You Didn't Hear it From Me
by InkSanity
Summary: You know how people say "A little bird told me"? Piper is that little bird. She is one of Storybrooke's best information brokers and will gladly sell info for a good offer. Piper believes that information is key to her life in Storybrooke, but when things start to change, she may realise that cashing out these secrets may also come with a price. Follows the canon plotline.
1. Chapter 1 - Pilot

Pilot

Another day, another dollar to make. It sounds rather sad and pathetic, but that's my motivation nowadays. I need to keep making money so I can leave this god forsaken town. Most people only care about themselves in this little place called Storybrooke. Most people don't care about me, and I don't particularly care for most people. However, I do find them interesting. It is truly fascinating watching them interact with one another. People exchange pleasantries everywhere, even if they don't like one another. There are so many stories and secrets to be told. That's what I find most interesting. It's what is in those tales and secrets is what makes me so powerful in my own little way.

I opened my eyes to see my room illuminated with the soft glow of the morning light. It was florally decorated and antiquity looking, but it was simple and had a view of the forest. It was in the only place I could call home, Granny's Bed and Breakfast. It was cozy and private but close to the people I cared about. With Ruby's help, Granny was kind enough to offer me this small room free of charge if I worked in her diner or occasionally as a maid for her B&B in the mornings. I loved and appreciated this room so much, and it was all thanks to them that I even had a somewhat normal life here in Storybrooke.

I lifted my head to see the clock reading 6:23 a.m. I sighed stretching my back out and rubbed my face to awaken my eyes. I would have to be at the diner in approximately half an hour. I sighed softly and then slowly got up out of bed and headed into my small bathroom. I was rather shocked by what I saw in the mirror. I laughed realizing how horrible I looked as I hadn't bothered changing out of my uniform last night…or even taken off my makeup. It was always a late night at the Rabbit Hole.

Along with working with Granny, I also work at the Rabbit Hole as a bartender who will enthusiastically ramp everyone up for karaoke night. It's probably one of my favourite things to do here nowadays. And yeah, even though its hard work, it's fulfilling. I rarely get a full night's sleep, but hey, it has its fair share of perks as well. It's a great place to people watch and hear stories from people who don't know I'm listening. Information is easy to come by there and I'm more than happy to serve those who are unknowingly loud about it.

I had quickly cleaned my face and reapplied my makeup. It was simpler than what I had to do for shifts at the Rabbit Hole, and luckily made me look less tired, so that was a plus. I smiled approving the look as I quickly brushed my hair out and put it into a mess of a bun. Once everything was approved, I quickly changed out of my dark uniform into my other one, which was a bright red and white. I put on my skirt, my blouse and my small apron. It was now 6:45 and it was time for me to head out into the world. I grabbed my purse, put on my shoes and headed out. As I closed the door to my room, I smiled to see Ashely Boyd. She had already started her shift.

I smiled at her, "Hey Ash, how are you and this little one doing?" I smiled touching her big belly. She laughed, "We're doing okay…tired as usual, but hey. Probably not as tired as you."

"Pfft," I smirked. "I'm not carrying a human inside of me. You should really ask Granny for a break. You should go on maternity leave. It's not like there are many people staying here anyway."

"Yeah, but you know I can't do that Piper," she smiled at me sadly with a slow shrug. "Anyways, I'll talk to you later, okay? You don't want to face the wrath of Granny if you're late."

"No, I do not." I laughed softly with her. She chuckled along with me but didn't look happy. That was generally what Ashley was like nowadays, though. Just becoming a woman, but still looked like a scared little girl who was about to become a mother. I could practically see the worry oozing out of her and I couldn't blame her. She was very pregnant and I knew how scared she was. I wanted to help her, but didn't know how. Other than being some sort of sounding board for her, there wasn't much I could do. Ruby and I always let her vent to us, and that was all I could do for her for now, unfortunately. As I was about to walk away I quickly turned back and I touched her arm in comfort. "And hey," I smiled grasping her arm and firmly looking into her eyes. "We're going to figure this out. You know Ruby and I will never leave you astray. We got your back, okay? You're never going to be alone in this. We got you."

She sighed softly and gave me a small smile after a moment of thought. Her eyes were welling, but she didn't want to show it, "Thanks, Piper. You're a good friend."

I shrugged with a small smirk, "Hey, I do my best. Anyways, I better head out. By the way, Ruby and I were planning on meeting up after our shifts. Want to come?"

"You _actually_ got a night off?" she laughed surprised.

"I'm just as surprised as you are!" I grinned as I started to walk out. "Anyways, I better go before I'm late! I'll see you later Ash."

"Yeah Piper," she waved. "See you tonight!"

After saying goodbye to Ash, I quickly ran out of the building. I realized that I only had about five minutes before my shift started. Luckily Granny's Diner was just across the street. My senses awoke as soon as I opened the door. The cool morning air rushed over me and I was no longer tired. The sun was starting to rise and the incorrect clock tower was starting to glow with a gentle calming light. The town was starting to awaken and that meant lazy and hungry people would soon be lining up at the diner. Instead of making their own breakfast, they were all more than willing to bother Ruby and I over coffee, eggs and bacon. I rolled my eyes and entered the diner.

Ruby chuckled as I entered, "Look what the cat dragged in."

I smirked at her, "Thanks, you're always so kind to me."

"And you're always too modest," she rolled her eyes as she rested her elbows on the counter as she looked at my simple blouse and skirt. "Aren't you a bartender? Don't you know how to make tips?"

"Correct me if I'm wrong," I wiped the counter down. "But isn't it good customer service?"

"Customer service doesn't matter if you're hot!" she struck a dramatic pose against the counter. She was wearing a blouse like me, but it was far too small and it showed off her midriff. She was also wearing a similar skirt, but she had cut it to be short enough to worry about wardrobe malfunctions.

I laughed comparing the difference, "It must be the reason why people keep coming back, because I don't know why Granny would keep you around otherwise."

"Hey!" she pushed me playfully. "I'm not _that_ bad at serving. I just don't want to be here anymore. This place is shit and boring."

"You can say that again," I chuckled as I grabbed the open sign. "But we gotta do what we gotta do. If we save enough we may be able to get out of this place someday. I know that's what I'm doing."

"You're much better at that than I am," she sighed agitated. "It's not fair."

"I also have multiple means of income." I rolled my eyes at her. "And that's through multiple jobs."

"Ugh," she rested her head on the counter. "That's disgusting."

"Yeah, I know," I smirked. "But hey, I love money."

She laughed, "Don't we all?"

"Anyways," I twirled the open sign in my fingers. "Let's open this bad boy up before Granny comes in and gives us shit for not opening on time."

"Smart move," she raised her eyebrows playfully and then turned towards the kitchen window. "You ready for some hungry people, Floyd?"

"Always ready, Miss Ruby." he peeked through with a smile.

"That's what I thought." she winked at him and with that, I opened Granny's Diner and we were now in business.

It was 8'oclock now. An hour flew by and I had already served a heck of a lot of coffee and overheard a lot of interesting material that I could possibly utilize later. Information was key to surviving in this town. I could never have enough of it and it was extremely important to keeping my livelihood afloat. So far, I had learned that Dr. Whale was going to ask the school teacher Mary Margaret out on a date. Why he was interested in her, I wasn't sure. Not that I didn't like Mary Margaret, she had always been very kind to me, but I wondered why a scumbag like Dr. Whale would have such interest in such an innocent lady like her.

Granny was also in a bit of a crabby mood today. Rent was due and she was scrounging up whatever cash she could find. She looked a little desperately at the tip jar every now and then and it hurt my heart a little to see her so stressed.

Billy, one of the town's mechanics had come in to flirt with Ruby. Ruby refused to admit that she liked him, but it was oh so obvious that she did. I could hear him asking her to go to the Rabbit Hole with him tonight, but she refused because of "Girls Night" with Ash and I.

Graham, the town's sheriff, had also come in. Just from looking at him I could tell he had another night time rendezvous with the Madame Mayor. It was obviously _supposed_ to be a secret, but because of my excellent timing, I have simply been in the right place at the right time multiple times. I have seen him jump out of Madame Mayor's estate countless times and I have seen Mayor Mills leave the B&B at various times in either the middle of the night, or the afternoon with Graham soon trailing out as well. Due to my crazy sleep schedule and my late hours at work, I have been able to see this secret relationship for what it is. I have yet to tell anyone about it, though. I'm sure if the Madam Mayor found out, she would quickly bestow the ultimate amount of scorn upon me and my life…and that is something I simply do not desire. Like any, this information is still valuable though and I always keep it in my back pocket if I need it, or if someone gives me enough cash for said info. Although it may not be obvious to the rest of the town…I sure know about their secret relationship...if it is even considered that.

Graham looked exhausted and had rather messy hair. He sat down at a booth looking rather disgruntled. I smirked at him as I approached, "Mornin' Sheriff."

He looked up at me with a polite but tired smile, "Hello Piper, how's the coffee this morning?"

"About as bitter as me," I winked playfully. "Sound good to you?"

"Ha ha," he smirked. "Can I have some of that bitter coffee?"

"Sure, thing Sheriff," I grabbed the fresh pot from the counter and poured it in front of him as I offered the milk and sugar.

Graham graciously took his coffee, "Thank you, Piper."

"Not a problem, Sir." I smiled softly as I started to walk away. "Yell at me if you need me."

"Sure thing," he chuckled into his coffee.

I walked behind the counter and started yet another pot of coffee. It was moments like this that were peaceful at Granny's. While refilling the coffee pot, nobody could bother me because I was getting what they wanted. They couldn't complain. I turned my head to see Granny in the back. She looked very stressed as she counted money. Luckily the diner made a lot, but she needed rent for both the diner and the B&B. The B&B barely made any money nowadays…Storybrooke wasn't exactly a tourist destination. Not a lot of people passed through so the B&B got little use. Other than myself and the occasional booty call, the B&B was empty. Maintaining and keeping up with the rent for both buildings was a lot, and I could understand Granny's stress. I wanted to go distract her to relax her a bit, but a small voice interrupted my thoughts, "Hey Piper."

I turned to see the Mayor's son behind me. Although I was not a fan of the Mayor, I did like her adopted son Henry. I smiled at him, "Hey, what's up little man?"

"Nothing really," he said with a shrug. "Was just wanting some breakfast before _school_."

I cocked my eyebrow at how he emphasized school, but I brushed it off for now, "Alright…let's get you some breakfast for _school_ then. What's on the docket for today? We better get your order in now if you want to catch the bus on time."

Henry looked at the clock on the wall and realized it was 8:10. School started at 9 and he had to catch the bus by 8:30, "Oh yeah…well can I look at the menu quickly and then decide."

I eyed him. He sounded very nonchalant about the time. I was also surprised that he was here by himself. Madame Mayor rarely lets him out of her sight. It's surprising that he's alone. Nonetheless, I grabbed a menu and passed it to him, "Just holler at me when you're ready."

"Will do." he nodded as he gladly took the menu. As I served a few more customers, waiting for Henry to order, Ruby nudged me. She gave me a questioning look as she used her head to gesture to Henry, "What's that about?"

"I have no idea," I peered over her shoulder at him. He was still nonchalantly looking at the menu.

Ruby sighed softly, "Well, I don't want to get shit from his mom if he's late for school because he's taking his sweet time to order."

"He's being suspicious too…"

"You're suspicious about literally everything Pipes," she rolled her eyes. "Either way, you should tell him to order now or leave for the bus. We're going to get shit on by his Mom if she thinks we made him late for school."

"Yeah, I know," I nodded. "I'm going to –

" _Ladies_!" a firm voice called to us interrupting our conversation. We turned to see Granny looking at us with crossed arms. "Coffee. Customers. Now."

"Yes, Granny." We both sighed and started our jobs again.

I walked over to Henry determinedly and leant over the counter to look him in the eye, "Alright kid, look at the time. You either order now or go wait for the bus. Your mom isn't going to appreciate it if you miss the bus because you're having breakfast."

"My mom won't care."

I laughed, "I highly doubt that, Bud. Now you either order now, or we're going to have to kick ya out so you can catch the bus."

He looked at the time and sighed, "Fine…can I take something to go?"

"Sure," I smiled. "What will you have?"

"Toast and bacon please."

"Coming right up, little man."

Once I got Henry's meal, I sent him on his way to school. As I watched him leave though, I saw that he sneakily decided to go the opposite way of his bus stop. I cocked my eyebrow confused. I looked at the time, the school bus would be arriving in five minutes. "What the hell are you doing, kid?" I was about to follow him when a huge _crash_ interrupted my thoughts. The whole restaurant was silent from shock.

"SHIT!" Ruby yelled from the kitchen. I tried to suppress a laugh as Granny just shook her head. She took a deep breath and calmly walked into the kitchen to most likely scold her grandchild.

I returned to my previous thoughts and remembered Henry. I quickly ran outside and tried to locate him, but unfortunately, he was nowhere in sight. I sighed as I turned to the bus stop to make sure that he wasn't there. He was nowhere to be seen and the bus had finally rolled up to the place he was supposed to be. The bus was there, but Henry was not. I stamped my foot as I looked around and shook my head annoyed that I had gotten played by a little kid, "Henry, you little shit."

I quickly walked back inside and walked up to the Sheriff who was enjoying his coffee. He smirked at me, "Why the long face Pipes? Is the bitterness consuming you?"

I rolled my eyes, "I'm sorry to interrupt your coffee, but unfortunately I have some information for the Sheriff…"

"Free of charge?" he cocked his eyebrow. "That's so unlike you Piper. Normally I have to con you into giving me info."

"Yeah well, I'm feeling generous because it could get me into some crap if I don't give it to you so, come here," I picked his arm up and had him follow me to the bathroom area. Being in the information business, I made sure that both were empty were empty before I started talking. Discretion is a rather important thing for me. After I was finished checking, I turned to him.

Graham chuckled at my suspicion, "Are we alone now?"

"Yeah. Now, we need to stop wasting time. You know how the Mayor's son was just in here?"

"Yeah…" he cocked his eyebrow. "Why?"

"The little bastard was being suspicious and then just lied to my face. He said he was going to catch the bus to school and then he completely veered in the opposite direction. I saw the bus pull up and he didn't get on it. He completely disappeared and I don't know where he went."

He sighed annoyed, "I'm sure it's nothing to be worried about. Every little boy ditches school every once in a while –"

"Um!" I interrupted him. "I'm not going to get into shit with his mother because _you_ don't feel like doing your job and looking for him."

"You didn't let me finish, Piper," he said agitatedly. "Relax. I am telling you that I am going to go look for him, but you need to relax. Regina won't even know a thing about it."

"Can I have that in writing?" I squinted at him. One of the last people I wanted on my case was the Madame Mayor. She was ruthless and wasn't afraid to hurt people in emotional manners. She could ruin me if I'm not careful.

Graham rolled his eyes, "I won't even bring it back to you. Now nothing is wrong, but I'll go and find him to put you at ease."

"That little shit is up to something," I sighed quickly as he started to walk out. "He was being suspicious earlier."

"Have any proof of that?"

"Other than a gut feeling, no…but just go look for him. Thank you for doing that. Coffee is on me."

He rolled his eyes and took a couple dollars out of his pocket, "Wouldn't want to lose a dollar. I know you well enough to know you hate paying for customers' food."

I chuckled at his niceties. He was certainly right on that, "Thanks, Sheriff."

"No problem. Now I'll let you know when I find him."

I sighed annoyed as my shift ended. This was shit. The first night I have off in weeks and I have to spend it worrying about the Madame Mayor's little twerp. There was still no word from him. Graham had given me updates here and there, but nothing new was said. I had tried to listen for news of him around the diner, but there was literally nothing about Henry. As school ended and Henry still hadn't shown up. Graham finally gave in to my constant text message nagging and told the Mayor about her son's disappearance. He told me that he did not tell her that I was the one who had given him the tip, which I had appreciated. If I can be, I'd definitely rather be off the Mayor's radar as much as possible.

Ruby bumped me playfully with her hip, "Thank god that shit is over with. Come on, let's go to your place, get ready and meet up with Ash."

I smirked at her, but then sighed, "Unfortunately I don't know if I am able to even consider going out tonight."

"Oh my god, Piper," she sighed. "Are you still worrying about Henry? I'm sure he's fine. All kids rebel. Hell, I'm still rebelling and I'm twenty-two. Take a chill-pill. It's not like you to be worrying like this. Especially over the Mayor's kid. Like Graham said, it's going to be fine. That's why the whole town isn't in a craze right now. Graham knows everything's fine. Henry's around here somewhere."

"He better be." I sighed agitatedly. We left the diner to some part-timers and headed towards the B&B. The closer I got to home, the better I felt, but there was still a nagging worry over my shoulder. I don't know why I was so worried, but I felt responsible in some manner. I didn't want to be responsible for that kid and now it feels like if I don't find him…this will all come back to me. I know Graham said it wouldn't, but for some reason, paranoia was getting the better of me.

It was starting to get dark now. There was still no word of Henry. Anxiety was building up in me and I hated it. I hated feeling responsible over something that didn't even matter to me in the long scheme of things. I mean, I liked the kid, but I didn't know him. I was more scared than anything that the Madame Mayor would find out that I had tipped Graham off and she might think it was my fault that her son disappeared.

It had started raining so Ash, Ruby and I decided to just hang out in my room instead of going out. We caught Ash up on the daily drama and the Henry situation. I asked her if she happened to know anything, but unfortunately, she didn't. I was getting more and more frustrated by the situation and Ruby could see it, "Pipes," she sighed. "Relax. It's going to be fine. Graham said it wouldn't come back to you."

"Yeah well, as I am one of them…I know that the Madame Mayor has eyes and ears everywhere. If they are as good as me at brokering information to her, they will be as stealthy about it as I am. I really don't want to get on her bad side. Not only will she probably kill me, but she pays me good money for information about petty things. I'd rather not lose her business…and I guess dying wouldn't be good either…"

Ash rolled her eyes as she held her stomach, "He'll turn up."

"I know…" I sighed annoyed. "I just hate feeling like this."

"Like what?" Ruby laughed. "Worried? You do that all the time?"

"No," I sighed as I laid down on the bed with my face in my hands. "Responsible."

Ruby and Ash had left. It was late now. Graham hadn't given me anything for the past few hours and I assumed that just meant he was done for the night. The anxiety just kept biting at my mind. It was infuriating to feel this way. Out of frustration with myself, I decided to take a walk. I didn't care that it was raining. I needed to clear my head…and maybe even try to look for Henry myself.

I put on my jacket, lifted my hood up over my head and headed out. I had no idea what time it was, but I couldn't care less. There was no way I could stay in my room any longer until I had some sort of answers. I walked into the chilly wet air and walked down Main street for a few moments. It started to thunder all the sudden which made me worry even more over the stupid kid, "God damn it, Henry…where are you?"

The thunder slowed after a couple of minutes which eased my nerves. No one was out right now…obviously, it's storming, so I couldn't get any information off of people. The more I thought about it, the more it seemed like a stupid idea to be out here looking for the kid right now, but I really don't care. It's not like I'm going to be finding any better info in my room. I continued in the rain. I was across from the gas station when surprising me completely, a yellow bug skidded to a dead stop in the streets.

I yelped embarrassingly at the surprise squeal of the tires and hid in the next alleyway out of both habit and fear. I rolled my eyes at my ridiculous actions and then peeked out behind the wall to get a closer look at the bug. A woman with blonde hair stepped out of the vehicle and slammed the door whilst looking incredibly annoyed. I did not recognize her, which made her particularly interesting in my book. I knew pretty much everyone in this town even if they didn't know who I was. I knew their names, likes and dislikes…her, she was a blank canvas and I knew absolutely nothing about her.

"Look," I heard her shout annoyed as I heard someone step out from the other side of the car. "It's been a long night, and it's almost…" I stopped listening to her as I gasped in surprise. Henry exited from the other side of the car. I felt my eyes open in shock and all the sudden anger overtook me, "What the fuck is this about?" I growled to myself. I was glad to know he was safe, but now because my ass was safe, I was _slightly_ angry by how Henry made me worry like this all day. I was more than happy to eavesdrop on their conversation guilt free for once. I couldn't _wait_ to hear the explanation for this.

It's like my broker prayers were answered. Dr. Hopper, our town psychiatrist all the sudden walked down the street with his excitable Dalmatian Pongo and advanced up towards them. I can assume that he doesn't know about Henry's disappearance today considering Graham didn't tell anyone but the Mayor about her son's disappearance and I only told Ash and Ruby.

"Henry!" he shouted concerned as he looked between him and this unfamiliar woman. "What're you doing here? Is everything alright?"

"I'm fine, Archie." the little shit spoke quickly to cover his tracks. I'm interested in this explanation that I'm sure Dr. Hopper is going to ask about.

"Who is this?" Archie looked at the blonde woman who looked like she just wanted to get out of here. Just the question I wanted to know…thank you, Doc Hop.

She spoke calmly, but with confidence, "Just someone who is trying to give him a ride home."

"Oh," Henry spoke up quickly. "She's my mom Archie."

My mouth dropped. What the hell? I was flabbergasted but exhilarated by this knowledge, "This is just too good." I laughed to myself. Henry literally left town to find his birth mother…research that probably took him weeks to work out. That little shit. I shook my head rather impressed by his antics. Even though he almost gave me an aneurysm with all this unnecessary worry, I appreciate his gusto. The kid had moxy to come up with a scheme like this and to even go through with it…that takes some backbone…especially when his adopted mother is the Madame Mayor. He's a smart little shit. To be honest, I was so impressed, I couldn't even really be mad at him anymore.

I was so impressed by Henry that I had missed their conversation. I was slightly pissed off that I had drifted off, but that's when the Doc left. I listened in again and I could hear Henry telling the woman about his theory on how everyone in this town is a storybook character. To be honest, I thought it was a creative fantasy that the kid had made up. He still couldn't determine who I'd be in his make-believe world, but I was okay with that. I'd rather not be compared to some do-gooder or evil fairy-tale character. He told me about it because I was more than willing to listen to him. I found his ideas on life fascinating…plus the mayor pays me to keep tabs on her son.

Generally, there's nothing to report…these stories are just funny little things the boy makes up. Plus, I'm sure that the Mayor never stops hearing about them. I'm sure she listens about how he thinks Mary Margaret is Snow White, how Ruby is Red Riding Hood, and how Doc Hop is Jiminy Cricket. I find it amusing as hell. I love hearing about his stories and he is more than willing to tell anyone who will listen…that's why I'm sure his mother knows about them. She listens, so I'm sure she knows.

I beamed, so happy I heard about this tonight. It was _so worth_ coming out in the rain and thunder to hear about this. I watched them get back in the bug. She was going to take Henry home. If I could follow them, I would, but unfortunately, I would have to run, and that would not be discreet. I chuckled to myself, "I think you've done enough snooping for tonight, Piper."

With another grumble of thunder, I headed back home. Henry was safe and I had some new information about him and his birth mother. That was a good night in my books. As I always say, you can never have too much information…the more the merrier. Knowledge is all the power in the world.

I had slept easily that night and actually smiled walking into Granny's that morning. Ruby chuckled at me, "Did you get some action last night? You're looking merrier than usual."

I laughed, "Oh no…but holy hell do I have something crazy to tell you."

"What?" she grinned. Ruby and Ash were the only ones I didn't charge for info…I mean it feels wrong to mix this kind of work into your personal life. I just always make sure they _promise_ not to say anything.

"You know the drill?" I cocked my eyebrow at her.

She put her hand over her heart mockingly, "I cross my heart, pledge all that I have to you and stick my finger in my eye if I betray your trust oh saintly Piper."

I rolled my eyes with a laugh at her antics, "Okay," I smiled as I approached her and spoke quietly. "Henry freaking skipped town and found his _birth mother_ last night. That's why he was gone all day. He literally went to Boston to find her and conned her into bringing him to Storybrooke. That smart little shit. I gotta hand it to him. I was so pissed off at him, but I'm incredibly impressed now."

Ruby's eyes widened in shock, "Holy shit. Who knows?!"

"Doc Hop knows, so I'm sure many people will know soon enough…plus its Wednesday today! My regulars are going to be asking _me_ about the undisclosed "news" this week, sooooooo many people will know by the end of the day."

She laughed, "You're such a shit disturber, Piper."

"It's what I do." I bowed playfully.

Breakfast was booming this morning. Lots of people were in and out today and because it was Wednesday. It was generally on this day that I had "clients" stop by and ask me for the scoop on what was going on around town off the record. I would tell the interesting dirty little secrets and rumours that were floating around town. I made sure that it was mostly innocent. If they were paying me big dollars though, I might go into more serious stuff. I would also answer questions about certain someones if they asked. With a charge, I grinned telling them the info. I know it's not the cleanest form of work, and people could get hurt if I'm not careful but hey…the people who know about me and my side business enjoy it and the best part, I make a living off it. That's the main thing. I need the money to skip town and most people know that is my ultimate goal.

The Sheriff came through the door as I was finishing talking to good old Marco about the latest gossip. After I had finished telling him the news, he discreetly handed me an envelope and nodded at me in thanks. I winked at him, "And as always, you didn't hear it from me."

"I would never, dear." he laughed in good nature and got up to leave.

Graham approached me with raised eyebrows, "Did I just see what I think I just saw?"

I straightened my back and acted nonchalantly, "Depends on what you think you just saw, Sheriff."

Graham rolled his eyes, "I thought you didn't do that at the diner, Piper."

"I have no idea what you're talking about," I laughed playfully.

Graham sighed as he eyed me suspiciously, "Knowing you…I'm assuming you know that Henry got back last night."

"Oh, _indeed_ I do." I smiled at him excitedly.

"Ugh…" Graham sighed agitatedly. "From the look on your face, I'm assuming you know more about the situation than the Mayor would like you to know."

I smiled sneakily at him from behind the counter and gave him an exaggerated nod, "Ooooh yeah I definitely do."

Graham sighed as he cocked his eyebrow with a moment of contemplation. Then a shocked look consumed his expression, "You're not _selling_ that information, are you?!"

"Moi?!" I laughed playfully at his correct accusation. "I would _never_ do such a thing. Who do you think I _am_ , Sheriff?"

"Shit," he sighed as he sat down at the counter in defeat, knowing I wouldn't just admit to him that easily. "Why do you have to make my job so much harder?"

"Not saying that I do make your job harder…but if I _did_ tryto make it harder, I would say that it's my favourite past time."

He looked up at me with an agitated but amused expression on his face, "You're unbelievable. You love to watch me suffer…"

"Nah," I grinned pouring him a cup of coffee. "I just like making you squirm."

"Thanks," he smirked referring to my comment. "You're always such a pleasure. So, what do you know about the mystery woman?"

I winked at him playfully, "Gonna have to pay me for that, Sheriff."

He gave me a look of disbelief and I playfully stuck my tongue out at him just so he knew I was teasing, "I know that blonde woman is his birth mother. Henry went to go find her in Boston and that's why he skipped class yesterday. He's a smart little shit."

"Do you know her name?"

"Who? The blonde?" I cocked my eyebrow thinking about it. "No actually…I didn't catch that."

"I know it."

"I'm sure you do…" I chuckled playfully. "Considering you're the Sheriff and you were investigating his disappearance, I'm sure you would have interviewed her."

"Want to know it?" he cocked his eyebrow playfully. "And some more info I have on her?"

I squinted my eyes at him suspiciously, "Um sure?"

He playfully smirked as he put the coffee to his lips, "Gotta pay me for it."

"Oh?" I scoffed with a laugh. "How rude, you excite me with information and then totally withdraw."

He rolled his eyes, "Her name is Emma Swan. She was going to leave last night, but then got caught driving under the influence. She ran over the historic "Welcome to Storybrooke" sign. She's in a jail cell right now with Leroy the grump."

I was surprised and impressed by this information he was giving me. It was unlike him to actually feed me information for my "bad habit" as he would call it. I smirked at him playfully, "Wow Sheriff, it's like you're feeding the beast. What would Madame Mayor say if _I_ knew this information?"

He shrugged nonchalantly, "She'd probably be happy you'd be spreading that around so they think she's a horrible person."

I nodded thinking about that and smiled at him, "Interesting information Sheriff. I shall keep it on the down low to the best of my capabilities."

"You give me a tip, I give you one," he sighed as he took another sip of his coffee.

"Good working with you Sheriff." I tapped his shoulder in thanks. "Call me if you need anything else."

"Always a pleasure Piper." he shook his head with a laugh.

As soon my work at Granny's was done, it was now time to get ready for work at the Rabbit Hole. Ruby followed me to my place and kept me company as I got ready. We were now in my room and I was putting on more dramatic makeup on for my bartending job. Ruby smirked, "So how much did you make today?"

"In tips?"

"No Piper," she rolled her eyes. "You know what I mean."

"Haven't counted it yet," I said seriously as I concentrated as I put on fake lashes. "It's all in envelopes in my purse at the moment. I'll count it tonight when I get home."

"Boo." Ruby sighed as she watched me put on my makeup in the bathroom mirror. She sighed, "I wish I worked at the Rabbit Hole instead of Granny's."

I laughed, "No you don't."

"Why not?!"

"There are so many scumbags at that bar. I know it's fun when you don't have to work there. It's fun to go there on a girls' night out and have drinks…but being on the other side of that bar sucks when there are shitty people making eyes at you."

"They only make eyes at you because you're pretty Piper," she said playfully. "Plus, I don't mind that. I like it when eyes are on me. Sounds like my kind of work."

"Why not apply then, you weirdo?" I chuckled. "I work there because I have to. You have the ability to choose where you want to work."

"Yeah," she shrugged. "I don't think Granny would be able to do this without me, though."

"Even with all your fighting?" I cocked my eyebrow at her.

"Yeah," she shrugged. "But anyways, I should probably get ready."

"Uh for what?" I looked at her surprised.

"I decided I'm coming to visit you tonight and tease a few guys. Sound good?"

"To each their own, Ruby," I smirked. "I'll be happy to have the company though."

"Good," she smirked as she gave me a quick squeeze. "See you tonight then."

"Will do," I smiled. She left the room and shut the door on her way out.

Once I was done with my look I emptied my purse of the envelopes and put them in my locked bedside drawer. I closed said drawer and then hid the key in my purse so I could head out to work my second job of the day.

The night went decently fast. Not a lot of new information was out at the moment. The town was mostly abuzz with news about the recent visitor, Emma Swan. I could hear everyone talking about how she was the Mayor's son's birth mother and how she was a drunk who had destroyed their historic sign. _I_ never said she was a drunk, but unfortunately, fact can turn to fiction in the blink of an eye. That's why information is power. When it is used in a tactful way, it can basically destroy a person's life if you're not careful. Luckily, I have yet to do that and I don't plan on it unless I'm paid an enormous amount.

I sighed softly as I poured another drink for Leroy. For such a grumpy man, he was always happiest when he was drunk, and that was saying something. I could see Ruby flirting with Billy in the corner of the bar. I smirked knowing that she liked him, "Go get him, girl."

It had been a busy day in Storybrooke today. I know that Emma has been released from her cell now and according to Ruby, she is actually staying in Storybrooke for a week. Apparently, she'll be staying at the B&B which is awesome because it should help Granny a lot with the rent. Not only that, but it'll be interesting to get to know her. See what makes her tick see what lies behind the name Emma Swan. I'm sure this isn't going to make Madame Mayor happy, but hey…that's always good in my books.

I sighed happily once the bar closed and my shift was over. Ruby scurried over to me and offered me her arm to link up together, "Let's head home!"

"Gladly," I laughed happily as I linked my arm with hers. We walked out of the bar with a lot of drunkards stumbling their way home. I asked for details about Billy but she insisted that we wait until were out of the public's eye to say anything. I felt impatient but understood why she wanted to wait.

I smiled seeing clear dark sky after last night's rain. It was lovely to see the moon lighting up the streets. We were silent for a moment but that's when Ruby looked up, "That's fucking weird."

"What?" I looked at what she was staring at. It was the broken clock tower. The reason it was so odd was because it seemed to have magically fixed itself. Unlike before my shift, it no longer read 8:15, but 2:45. I laughed in surprise, "I guess things are finally starting to change around here…"

Ruby chuckled with me as we walked up to the B&B, "Wouldn't it be great if that were true?"


	2. Chapter 2 - The Thing You Love Most

The Thing You Love Most

Another day, another person to talk to. So, gross. For someone in the information business I hate talking to people…Seems like this is going to be my theme of the day. It started off just fine…in fact, it started off rather great. I felt excited at the prospect of a new person in town. I wondered how she would gel with everyone. Even though she wouldn't be staying long, it would be interesting to see what kind of trouble she could get herself into. Considering she was the birth mother of the Madame Mayor's child, it was highly unlikely that she could keep her head down or her nose clean in Storybrooke.

I had started my morning shift at Granny's and everything was normal. The coffee was brewing, the eggs were cooking, the bacon was popping, Ruby was wearing her classic red, Granny was ordering us around and Graham had come in for his morning coffee. Everything was going off without a hitch. It almost felt relaxing in an odd way.

Interrupting that peaceful normality was Sidney Glass walking through the door with a stack full of papers in his arms. Weird…normally he had a paper boy drop them off at the diner…plus the paper doesn't even come out for a couple of days. I cocked my eyebrow at him as he approached me with the papers. He practically slammed them on the counter because they were so heavy. I laughed confused, "Uh hey, Sidney…whatcha got there?"

He gave me a questioning look, "Why it's the paper, Piper. What else would it be?"

"Nooooooo, really? I had no idea," I said sarcastically as I rolled my eyes at him. "I'm more so wondering why _you're_ bringing them here. Plus, it's not paper day."

"It's breaking news! It's an issue that needed to be talked about!" he offered me one as he untied the bundle.

I looked at the front page. I smirked a little bit amused as I saw an unflattering mugshot of Emma Swan looking up at me as the headline read STRANGER DESTROYS HISTORIC SIGN – ALCOHOL INVOLVED. "Wow," I chuckled as if I knew nothing about the situation. "What a _bitch_. How dare she destroy our sign unintentionally."

He gave me an unamused look as he sighed aggravated. He was mad that I wasn't taking his work seriously, "Not the point, Piper. She was drinking. She's been here for what – a day and she's already causing a ruckus."

I rolled my eyes at him, "Oh relax. I don't condone drunk driving if that's what you're worried about. But I think you dropped the ball on this news Sidney. Everyone is already talking about this…"

He scoffed, "I _doubt_ they know the whole story, Piper. Now, if you could pass these out for me, that would be great."

"Uh…the people can get the paper as they please, Sidney." I laughed. "I'm not going to hand them out like flyers. I know being a delivery boy isn't your normal job, but don't worry, I'm sure people will read your stuff."

He nodded affirming my actions, "Alright then. See you later."

"Nothing for the road?" I gestured to the menu.

"Not today, thanks."

He left the diner. After a moment of me looking at the papers on the counter, Ruby came over and cocked her head at the door, "What was that all about? Why is Sidney bringing us the paper? It's not even paper day."  
"Urgent issue, apparently," I grunted as I picked the heavy stack of papers up off the counter and put it down where it was supposed to go. "And you know what that means…"

"Do I?" she rolled her eyes at me. "You like to think I know these things, but I can never tell what's going on in that crazy turmoiled brain of yours."

I looked at her with a quiet chuckle, "Oh Ruby, the Madame Mayor made sure that this issue was out. We know that Sidney has that weird thing for her. He always does what she says and will do anything to get it done…When there's a _breaking news_ story like this…you know the Mayor asked for it to be done. Especially considering Ms. Swan just showed up two nights ago. Madame Mayor isn't exactly a fan of Emma, and this has that fact written all over it."

Ruby looked at the paper and then back to me with a soft laugh, "You read into things too much, Pipes. But hey – that's why you're where you are today."

"Oh yeah!" I laughed at my normal volume. "Working double shifts and squatting in a B&B. My life is heaven."

It was about half an hour later when the Madame Mayor herself stepped into the diner. I straightened my back and cleared my throat as I felt tension build up in my stomach. The look on her face was unreadable and I hated that. I didn't like being unable to tell what was on her mind because she was easily one of the most terrifying women I have ever met.

She approached me at the counter and sat in her regular seat professionally. She wanted to talk business, "I would like a tea. One cream, two sugar please."

I nodded at her with a phoney relaxed, but confident smile, "Coming right up, Madame Mayor." I never liked interacting with the Mayor, but I had to fake it. I seemed to do a good job at it considering people always told me so. Maybe they were just saying that, but hey, I'll take compliments where I can get them.

I quickly made her tea in front of her. She watched me with what seemed to be an irritated expression on her face. My heart picked up nervously but then she spoke quietly, "You know how we do business, right?"

I looked into her dark eyes questioningly, but then blankly stated, "Yes."

"I pay you for your services, you give me information about my son."

I cleared my throat slightly uncomfortable about where this was going. Did she find out about how I had tipped off Graham about Henry's disappearance? Was she going to accuse me for his disappearance? Was she going to blame me for this new woman entering our town? So many questions were flying through my head, but I shook myself out of it. It wasn't smart to look nervous or upset in front of the Mayor. She could easily use that against me. To answer her question, I simply stated, "Yes."

"Well..." she stated softly, but I could tell she was annoyed. "Out of all the things going on in his life, you left out a few _rather_ important details…"

"And what were those _rather important_ details?" I cocked my eyebrow confused. Other than unintentionally watching him skip school, I couldn't possibly think of something that I hadn't told her.

"For one…" she started. "I would expect you to know about the major things that are going on in his life…like how he was searching for his birth mother."

"Hey -" I was about to correct her understanding of what I do, but then she interrupted me.

"Ah!" she put her hand up to stop me. "I'm speaking. You shush until your unhappy client is done talking. Got it?"

I sighed as I wiped down the counter to look a little more natural. I couldn't let her get the best of me, "Of course, Madame Mayor."

"Good," she put her hand down. "Second…not once in your reports have you mentioned his delusions about how he believes everyone in this town is some sort of fairy-tale character."

I looked up at her surprised. I was positive that she would have known about that already. Whenever somebody asks him about that big book that Mary Margaret had given him, he can't stop talking about his theories. It's not like anyone believes him, but I always think it's interesting to hear his perspective on the world.

The Mayor had finished speaking. After a moment or two of silence, I put up my hand up as if I was going to ask her a question, "Is it my turn to speak now?"

She rolled her eyes unamused, "Yes."

"Okay," I looked at her confidently. "For one, there is no way that I would have been able to know he was looking for his birth mother. He has never divulged this information to anyone other than maybe Doc Hop. Believe me, I've tried getting information out of that man before, he won't budge. The only other place I could get that kind of information would be from yours or his personal computer. I'm sure he did his fair share of research to find Ms. Swan. I know you think I'm some sort of miracle worker, but I'm not a hacker. I can't get access to his personal computer without it. That's probably the only way I would have known he was searching for his birth mother."

"So, you're telling me that I need you to search his computer now too? For me to know what he's up to?"

"Uh…" I cocked my eyebrow at her surprised, but I wouldn't miss out on a business opportunity. "Hey! I'll do it for an extra charge, but you know…you can do that yourself if you want to be that…" I paused looking for the right words. " _In tune_ with what your son is up to."

She rolled her eyes at my phrasing, "And what's your excuse for the lack of report on the fairytales?"

"That's simply, my bad," I shrugged. "I should have divulged that information, but I honestly thought you knew about it already."

She sighed agitated, "I don't pay you to organize what you think I do and do not know. I pay you to tell me about what is going on in my son's life!"

"Yes," I nodded calmly. "I know that. I just assumed that you knew because that is all he talks about when someone asks about it."

She rubbed her forehead annoyed, "He thinks I'm some sort of Evil Queen."

I had to suppress a laugh so I covered it up with a cough.

She eyed me suspiciously and then stated seriously, "Now that we're clear, you tell me _everything._ Either that, or we're done and I'll expose you for the little bitch you are."

I shrugged unafraid of her threat. I was a valuable asset to her and she hated that I knew it, "Sure thing, Madame Mayor. It won't happen again. Anything else for you today?"

She sighed annoyed but after a couple of moments she spoke again, "Know anything else about Ms. Swan that you haven't already told the world?"

I shook my head, "Unfortunately, I have yet to make her acquaintance, but when I have more info on her, I'll let you know."

"Good," she finished her tea and then got up. "Oh, there is one thing you can tell me."

"Of course."

She leant in close as she handed me the payment for her tea, and thirty dollars extra, "What room is she staying in at the B&B?"

I cocked my eyebrow slightly confused as to why she would want to know that, but I don't ask questions. When the money is upfront where people can see it, I want the client out of there as soon as possible. Luckily for me, Ruby and I had checked what room she was staying in last night when we got back to the B&B after my shift, "She's in room four," I told the Mayor. "Considering it's the _only_ room rented out in the B &B at the moment, I'm sure it won't be too crowded there. Anyways…you didn't hear it from me."

"Excellent," she gave me her biggest and cheesiest smile as she left the diner. "Always a pleasure, Piper."

I wasn't exactly certain how much time had passed, but it couldn't have been a lot. Graham was still here drinking his coffee and Henry (who, by the way, I was keeping a very close eye on) was sitting in the booth behind him, waiting for his breakfast. The diner was reasonably quiet until surprisingly Ms. Swan herself entered and sat down at the counter. I chuckled softly as I was filling a pot of coffee, "Well look who it is, the woman of the hour."

"Uhhh what're you talking about?" Ms. Swan looked at me questioningly.

I smiled as I offered her some coffee. She nodded so I poured her a cup as I continued, "Haven't seen this morning's breaking news, huh?" I rolled my eyes as I grabbed a paper and slid it over to her. "I don't blame you, it's full of crap."

After a moment of reading the front page, she sighed, "This story is included in that crap."

"Oh?" I chuckled. This should be interesting. "Just when I thought you were a rebel tourist with a thing for drinking and killing signs…"

She smirked at me, but then shook her head, "I wasn't drunk."

"Then how come you ran into the sign?" I poked playfully. "Did it run out in front of you?"

"No, but a wolf did," she sighed. "Came out of nowhere."

"Interesting." I smiled. "It's always good to get more information and hear both sides of the story. I'll be sure to tell people so they don't buy into Sidney's crap."

"Sidney?"

"The guy who wrote the paper."

"Ah," she understood as she took another swig of her coffee. "Well, thanks."

"Not a problem. I'm Piper, by the way."

She smiled softly, "I'm Emma."

"Nice to meet you, Emma." I gave her a genuine grin. She seemed nice so far. "Now, would you like anything to eat?"

"I'm fine thanks…the Mayor oddly enough dropped by my room this morning and gave me a basket full of apples." she held one deep red apple up to prove it. Oooooooh. That's why Madame Mayor wanted her room number. That's interesting. "Does she do that with every tourist?"

I laughed, "Not that I know of, but hey – tourism isn't exactly a big thing around here. You're also kind of a special case considering your situation with her son."

She chuckled, "You got that right. Is she always so passive aggressive?"

"Passive aggressive?" this should be fascinating.

"She offered me apples, but was telling me to leave at the same time."

"Ah well," I whispered softly considering Henry was just a few feet away. "She's rather protective of her son…you might want to be careful. She's done some pretty crazy shit."

"Like?" she cocked her eyebrow.

"Sorry, Emma." I looked around the restaurant realizing that Henry was looking at us. "Can't say that here. Plus, if you want that information we're going to have to talk on different circumstances." I need money for that kind of info, but I'm not making that kind of deal with her in the diner. Plus, I'm not even sure if it would be smart to tell Emma about my side business. I'm 99.9% sure that the Madame Mayor is going to ask me for info on Emma, so it might be beneficial to just be the friendly barista/bartender to get good material out of her.

She looked even more confused, but nodded, "Uh alright. I'll let you get back to work."

"Alright," I smiled. "Holler if you need anything."

"Will do." she took another sip from her coffee cup.

I headed into the back to grab some more clean cups and utensils. Completely unexpectedly, Ruby grabbed my arm and pulled me out of everyone's sight. I had yelped surprised, but then playfully smacked her arm when I realized what had happened, "God damn it, Ruby! I've told you not to sneak up on me like that!"

She laughed at my irritation, "Ohhhh you poor wittle baby!"

"Shut it." I rolled my eyes at her with a slight laugh. "So, you wanna tell me why you almost made me shit myself?"

"Soooo," she gestured out towards the rest of the diner. "What was she like?"  
"Who? Emma?"

"No…Granny," she crossed her arms at me disappointedly as she rolled her eyes. "Of course, Emma. You dumbo."

I shrugged, "She seemed fine. Apparently, her royal majesty the Madame Mayor is trying to push her out of town, but that doesn't surprise me. I doubt Mayor Mills will let anyone get in between her and her son, but Emma seems to be handling herself well enough. I'll be interested to see what she does next."

As I was talking, Ruby was making a hot cocoa to make herself look busy, "You can say that again. This town could use a little drama. I'm bored as hell."

"Oh, this town has _plenty_ of drama already. You just can't see it. It's hidden in everyone's closets."

"Fair enough. But anyways, want me to tell Emma about you? Let her know that you're the one to come to if she needs any info for a _reasonable_ price?"

I rolled my eyes. Ruby always wanted to help me with my side business, but I didn't want her to be involved. If things ever went awry with it, I could get into some serious trouble and I didn't want her to get caught in the crossfire. Plus, I wasn't even sure if I should tell the tourist these kinds of things yet. I sighed at her, "You already know my answer to that, Ruby."

"Aw come on!" she sighed as she finished off the hot cocoa off with some whipped cream and cinnamon. "It'd be fun!"

"No, Ruby."

She stuck her tongue out at me, "You're no fun."

"Yeah well, too bad." I laughed as I followed her out of the kitchen.

Surprisingly she placed the hot cocoa in front of our new customer, Ms. Swan, "Here you go."

Emma looked about as confused as I felt, "Thank you…but I did not order that."

"Yeah, I know," Ruby grinned at her. "You have an admirer."

Emma turned to look around to see who it could be, but then her eyes fell on the Sheriff. Oh my god…Even you're not that stupid Graham. The Madame Mayor is already uptight enough about Emma being in town. If she thinks that Emma is going to get in between her relationship with her son _and_ her relationship with Graham, there might be bloodshed.

As Emma got up to speak with Graham, Ruby lifted her eyebrows at me with a huge smirk on her face. I cocked my eyebrow at her as I whispered, "What did you do?"

"Just watch." she chuckled.

I looked back to the exchange. I had missed the first part of their conversation, but Emma was now thanking him, "Look, the cocoa was a nice gesture, and I am impressed that you guessed that I like cinnamon on my chocolate 'cause most people don't, but I am not here to flirt. So, thank you, but," she put the cup down on his table. "No thank you."

I appreciated Emma's words. It was kind of her to give the drink back to Graham, but his expression was confused. He tilted his head and arched his eyebrow, "I didn't send it."

Thank goodness, I was relieved for Graham. Although I love drama financially, morally it's not fun to deal with. Especially for people I like. I'm relieved Graham isn't that stupid to potentially step on the Mayor's toes by flirting with another woman. That would make a shit situation for all of us.

Surprising me though, Henry from the booth behind them then peered over and simply stated, "I did."

Shocking me further, Ruby just snorted beside me. I looked at her surprised and laughed at her killing herself because she thought she was so funny. She wanted Emma to think that Graham had sent the drink over to her. I chuckled at her, "You're as much of a shit disturber as I am!"

"Yeah well," she continued to laugh. "I learn from the best. I'm more capable of disturbing shit than you know!"

Another shift was done and it was a shorter one too. I sighed relieved to get out of Granny's diner to see a beautiful blue sky. I smiled as I felt the sun on my face. The warmth was pleasant and relaxing. Lucky me, I had some time to kill before my later shift at the Rabbit Hole, tonight. What on earth could I possibly do with practically a whole day on my hands?

Sleeping would probably be the smart thing to do, but I moseyed around town for a couple of minutes, just looking into store windows. Usually I would just hang out with Ruby or Ashley in my spare time, but unfortunately, both are busy. Ruby was working for another couple of hours and Ashley would be starting her shift at the B&B in about – I looked up at the now working clock tower – twenty minutes. It was 12:30 now and I had my shift at the Rabbit Hole at 8. What possible trouble could I get myself into today?

Surprising me suddenly, my phone buzzed telling me that someone was calling. I chuckled at my skittishness as I checked who was phoning me. I groaned as I realized it was the diner. Either I had forgotten something, or Granny wants me to come back in. _Please_ tell me I forgot something.

I answered playfully, "Hello there, Piper is unavailable at the moment. If you have a message, please leave it at the tone."

"Very funny, Piper," I could just sense Granny rolling her eyes as she said this. "Now I'm extremely sorry to ask you this, but I need you to work Ashely's shift at the B&B if you can."

"Huh?" I looked at the clock. "When did she call in?"

"Literally just now," she sounded irritated. "I'm sorry to ask you this dear, but I'm kind of desperate and I don't want to disappoint our guest if someone isn't there to help her. I can't just leave the desk closed."

I sighed slightly irritated but nodded. Ah well, so much for your free day Piper… "Yeah Granny," I told her softly. "I'll take care of it. I have a shift at the Rabbit Hole at eight though so I can't stay past then."

She sounded relieved, "Thank you so much, Dear. You will only need to stay until five thirty or six. I'll try to be back there as soon as possible."

"Don't worry about it Granny," I chuckled. "Just as long as I have enough time to get ready for tonight, then I'll be fine."

"Thank you, Piper. You're a lifesaver."

"I'll head over to the B&B now. Do tell me though, what happened?"

"Ashley said she's been sick all morning. I understand the pain of being pregnant, but still…would have been nice if she had given us a heads up beforehand."

"You're telling me," I laughed. "Anyways, Granny. I'll talk to you later."

"Thanks again, Piper. I'll make sure to pay you for this shift."

"Thanks, Granny."

As I hung up I sighed deeply as I took in my last bit of sun, "Ah well…who doesn't like to spend their time in a practically deserted B&B?"

Once I got back to Granny's Bed and Breakfast, I quickly went to my room and got changed out of my diner uniform into something more comfortable. Luckily when I worked in the B&B, I didn't have to wear uniform, so that was a plus. Once I had finished, I headed to the front desk and took a seat in the chair. I suspected it was going to be a quiet day…it's not like Storybrooke is a tourist destination. Considering the B&B only has one guest, I know it's going to be a quiet and probably boring day.

I sighed softly as I quickly texted Ashley to make sure she was okay. I was a little irritated that she had called in so late, but I couldn't blame her. The baby would be coming in a few weeks and she probably just needed a day to relax. I imagine carrying all that extra weight isn't helping her back. She shouldn't be working right now anyway.

The doorbell jingled unexpectedly. I put my phone down to see Ms. Swan coming in with a huge case that was holding a bunch of folders. I cocked my eyebrow at her curiously, "Hey, Emma."

"Oh, hey Piper," she looked at me with a laugh. "Weren't you just working at the diner a few hours ago?"

I chuckled as I stood up politely from behind the desk, "You'll quickly learn that I work practically all over town."

"Damn," she gave me an empathetic sigh. "I know the feeling. Working multiple jobs suck. Feels like you never get a break."

I smirked, "You're telling me. I have another shift tonight down at the Rabbit Hole."

"The Rabbit Hole?"

"It's a bar. I'm a bartender there. You should check it out if you're looking for a place to have fun. We have a karaoke night every couple of weeks."

"Lucky for you," she chuckled. "I don't like to sing."

"Aw," I laughed. "That's too bad. I'm sure you'd still have fun though," my instincts of snooping were killing me. I had to know what those documents were about. I looked down nonchalantly at the files in her hands, "So what do you got there?"

"Oh," she looked down at the files and then back up at me. "Archie gave them to me! They're Henry's. He's letting me read up on him and see what's going on in that head of his."

"Oh?" I cocked my eyebrow at her surprised. Doc Hop gave _this stranger_ the personal files of one of his patients? It doesn't matter if it's Henry's file and he gave it to the child's birth mother, that doesn't seem like him. He wouldn't _dare_ give me a file like that. I've known him for years and he's known this stranger for two minutes. He doesn't know her. I understand why he wouldn't give them to me, as I could potentially use that knowledge for my own personal advancement, but still…even though Emma is Henry's birth mother…she isn't legally his mother. It feels to me like Archie seriously broke ethical code here. I looked at Emma again, "He just gave them to you willingly?"

"Yeah," she shrugged. "I was surprised too. I didn't think shrinks were allowed to do that."

"I don't think they are…" I said quietly, but let it slide. "But hey, I guess you're a special exception considering your situation."

"I guess so," she shrugged again. "Anyways, I'm going to do some reading in my room. I'll talk to you later, Piper."

"Yeah," I nodded still thinking about Archie and his reasoning behind this. "For sure. I'll see you later."

It was about an hour later when the Sheriff came in unexpectedly. Graham approached the desk with a smirk. Oh, my god, my mind was racing. Were him and Regina really going to meet up in the middle of the day for a booty call? If that actually happens, they're just asking to be found out. I stood up with a chuckle as I played dumb, "What brings you here, Sheriff? Did you miss me serving you lunch at the diner?"

He chuckled, " _Always_ , Piper. You make my life such an ease."

"Ha ha," I grinned at his sarcasm. "Really though, what're you up to?"

"Actually," he put his badge out on the counter. "I'm here for Sheriff duties."

I cocked my eyebrow at him. This wasn't about me, was it? I have given him no reason to arrest me so I stayed calm, "What seems to be the problem?"

"Got a tip about our new guest," he raised his eyebrows at me. "So, if you could tell me her room number that would make my life a whole lot easier."

I tilted my head at him with an interested look. Info like this was golden and Graham was about as easy to work with as play doh, "Oh you should know that I'm not going to make it that easy on you Sheriff. Tell me what the tip was and _then_ I'll give you her room number."

He chuckled, "That's not how this works, Piper. I'm the Sheriff…you're supposed to give _me_ info. In fact, I could charge you for obstructing justice."

I could tell he was bluffing. He wouldn't do that and he could see that I knew it too. I stood up at him defiantly, "You got a warrant, Sheriff?"

He sighed at me, "No."

"Then you can either save time and tell me what the tip was, or you can waste time and go back to the police station and go through the painstakingly long process of getting a warrant set up. Oh, and you would probably need two of those…one to look through the B&B and one to actually search Emma's room."

He thought for a moment and then looked at me with an amused, but irritated expression, "You're such a pain."

I grinned at him victoriously, "I know. So, what was the tip?"

He sighed defeatedly as he leant against the counter to explain, "Apparently, Emma and Archie had a bit of a row over these files that she wanted. He apparently refused to give them to her, and when he left for lunch, she went and stole them from his office."

I cocked my eyebrow at him confused. That's weird…she said that Archie had willingly given them to her, "You mean Henry's files?"

"Yeah," he looked at me surprised. "You know something about it?"

I looked at him with a playfully unamused expression. It just so happened I was as lucky as usual and did know something, "Do you not know who you're talking to? Of _course,_ I know something."

He rolled his eyes, "I should know better than that."

"Yes, you should."

"Can you tell me what you know?"

"Uh huh…" I nodded. "But you know the drill."

"Oh, come on, Piper. I gave you the tip already."

"About information I already knew." I booped his nose. "So, sorry…but no."

He sighed annoyed as he thought for a moment or two, "Fine…no deal. Can I just have her room number, like you promised?"

"Gosh you're no fun," I smirked at him. "She's in room four."

He gave a deep sigh, "Thank you."

As Graham left for the room I thought about the situation some more. It was so odd to me. I couldn't see Archie just offering those files up, but I could also tell Emma was just as surprised as I was about getting to take them. Maybe she was a good actress, but I don't think so. If she were hiding something that she had stolen, I doubt she would have told me _what_ she stole. Something's not right about this.

It was a few minutes later when Emma came down the stairs in cuffs with Graham behind her carrying the files. She looked at me and then to Graham, "Piper, can you please just tell him that I came in here not looking like I stole something! Tell him what I told you…"

Graham smirked at me. He was getting what he wanted without having to pay for it. He somehow knew I was indecisive about telling Emma about my side business and now he was using it against me to get the info he wanted. Although it pissed me off slightly…I was a little impressed as well.

I sighed shrugging it off like it was no big deal, "To be completely honest…I don't think she did it. She showed me those files far too casually for someone who potentially stole them. Plus, I thought there was something weird about Archie just giving them to you, considering that's against his code of ethics…but Emma was just as surprised as I was that he had given them to her. There's something more here going on."

"Yeah." Emma looked at Graham annoyed. "I'm being framed."

"Yeah, well…" he tapped her back to lead her out. "We'll see what the judge says about that. Nice doing business with you Piper." He winked at me, knowing that he had played me this time.

I wanted to give him the finger, but not wanting to be suspicious in front of Emma, I put on a sickly-sweet smile, " _Anything_ for you, Sheriff."

The rest of the afternoon was rather quiet. I continued to piece things together and come up with theories of my own for Emma's case out of mostly boredom. Emma claimed that she had been framed…but by whom? The only person who would want to do that is the Madame Mayor. I could see her doing something like that to a person who gets in her way…especially a person who is potentially trying get in-between her and her son. Could she con Archie though? I mean, the man is stupidly moral. He, like everyone, is also terrified of the Mayor, though. Would his fear override his ethical code though? Maybe…

Ruby came into the B&B suddenly. I hadn't even realized the time, her shift was over. She looked extremely excited as she ran over to the desk, "Hey Pipes! Boy, do I have stuff to tell you!"

"Please tell me!" I laughed. "It's been _so_ boring here."

"Okay!" she put her purse down on the counter and looked at me seriously. "Get this…I'm sure you heard about Emma getting arrested considering she was here when it happened."

I nodded, so she would continue, "Well after that, Mary Margaret bailed her out!"

"Wait…" I looked at her confused. "Why?"

"I have _no idea_ , but she did. That's not even the best part, though!"

"What?" I stood up excited. This must be good.

"After Emma was released, she headed to Regina's house with a fucking _chainsaw_ and like a slasher movie, cut down a branch from her treasured apple tree!"

I felt a huge smile carve into my face, "Holy shit."

"I KNOW!" Ruby yelled in excitement. "THIS IS INSANE!"

I was seriously impressed by the size of Emma's balls. She needed some serious guts to stand up to the Mayor, and to do it in such a defiant and creative manner…I felt like I needed to give her a round of applause.

Interrupting our excitement, the phone rang for the first time of the day. I looked at it shocked, but then I quickly answered it, "Granny's Bed and Breakfast, this is Piper speaking. How may I help you today?"

"Piper," I heard the voice of the Mayor smiling on the other end of the line. Holy shit…did she know we were talking about her? "How are you doing, Dear?"

"Oh…" I felt my voice go timid for a moment, but then I strengthened it. "I'm doing just fine Madame Mayor. How about you?"

"I'm _great_ , dear," that's a lie. Emma just cut your apple tree. "I have something unfortunate to tell you though. Unfortunately, a city ordinance states that the B&B is unable to host felons. So, Emma Swan must go, or Granny could be charged."

"Wait…" I cocked my head confused. Ruby looked at me worriedly. "You're telling me that you want us to kick out our only customer?"

"Well, you have to Dear," she stated matter of factly. "It doesn't matter what you want. You just have to do it. Tell Granny that I want her out by the end of the day."

"Um sure." I nodded unsure of what to do.

"Ta ta." She hung up.

Granny had come to the B&B about half an hour later and I gave her the rundown of the situation. She seemed as annoyed as I did…but also like me, she didn't want to defy the Mayor. Madame Mayor was just pissed about her tree and wanted Emma out of town as soon as possible. What better way to make a person leave than kicking them out of the place they're staying?

Emma came in soon after and Granny took the fall and told her that she had to leave. I felt bad making her leave considering I didn't think she stole Archie's files, but she didn't go with a fuss. She gathered her things and left quietly. As she was leaving, though I stopped her suddenly and smiled, "If it's any consolation, I think what you did to the Mayor's tree was fucking badass."

She grinned at me, "I try my best to be as badass as possible."

"I'm sorry you have to leave…"

"Don't worry about it. I know it's not your fault."

"Still though," I offered her a coupon we generally give to those who were pissed off at us for bad service. Not that it happens often considering no one ever comes here, but it felt like I needed to offer something to her. "Free coffee and meal on us."

"Thanks, Piper." She took the coupon and left the B&B.

Although it had been a quiet day, it was busy. It goes to show you, you can easily get information, even in the quietest of places. Unfortunately for me, I was now going to the noisy Rabbit Hole for my last shift of the day. I sighed tiredly as I opened the door to the establishment, ready to put on my charming smile, make some tips and get some more gossip floating around town.

I guess Ruby and I were wrong in thinking that nothing would change around here. Even though she has only been here for a short time, Emma seems to be bringing a lot of change around Storybrooke…It'll be interesting to see what else is going to happen around here. Either way though, I'm going to make sure that I know it all. I want to be a part of that change whether they know about me or not. Information is power and that's why it is the thing I love most.


	3. Chapter 3 - Snow Falls

Snow Falls

Another day, another dollar in the bank. This week has been rather busy for me. Not only have I been working non-stop, but I've been gathering a lot of new intel. Everyone has been talking about our new visitor, Ms. Swan, non-stop and it's been interesting listening to what they say. Lots of people are agreeing with me…they think what Emma did to the Madame Mayor's tree was badass. Others are saying that it was stupid…which I can understand. Emma just got a one-way ticket to the Mayor's bad books, and she was already on thin ice, to begin with.

To top it off, I was right about the Mayor wanting me to keep tabs on Emma. The day after the tree incident happened I got a call from her saying that she wanted every little scrap of information I could gather on Ms. Swan. Annoyingly, Sidney seemed to be working on the same case. He would always report to the Mayor about what he'd learned about Emma's past because he had access to those kinds of resources. Unfortunately for me, I just had this town to go by, and Emma's trust.

She seemed to trust me decently. She was always happy to talk to me whenever she came into the diner, so that was one way to get some info. Ruby also fed me some details that I may not have heard during the day and that was always appreciated. Another thing that got me in Emma's good books was trying to talk to Doc Hop after her supposed frame job.

Emma didn't ask me to go talk to him, but I wanted to get the info for both her and myself to see why he did it. For one, that would help her trust me more and two, I was simply just as nosey as usual.

Although the Doc was rather unwilling to talk at first; when I said, I would contact the ethical board about him inappropriately giving out the personal information of one of his clients, he became rather eager. I don't generally enjoy using threats like that to get information, especially on someone like the Doc, but this was important. If I was going to stay in Madame Mayor's good books, I needed to get good information out of Emma. To do that, I needed to gain her trust. This was a reliable first step.

"Regina told me to do it," Archie sighed irritated as he unwillingly told me what had happened. "You know her, Piper. She's terrifying. She'll have my head on a platter if I don't do as she says."

"Was it really worth breaking your _ethical code_ as a _psychiatrist_ to listen to the Mayor, though?" I cocked my eyebrow at him as I crossed my arms. "I mean come on, Doc. You're better than that. What do you always say… _Listen to your conscious_. Did your conscious approve of this?"

He rolled his eyes annoyed that I was using his own words against him, "You can't act like you're some saint, Piper. I mean, look at what you do for a living. Does it really fulfil you to make others miserable and have them tell you their secrets?"

"Don't go all shrink on me, Doc," I chuckled while shaking my head. "Like I said, I'm not going to tell the board of ethics anything. I just need you to tell me what happened and then we'll be fine."

"It's my word against yours," he shrugged. "It's not like you can take me to court with this."

"No," I shrugged back honestly. "But that's not why I want this information. So, please continue…"

"Do tell me," he chuckled aggravated. "Why _do you_ want this information?"

"I'm asking the questions here, Doc," I sighed impatiently. I liked the Doc, so I didn't want to bother him more than I had to, but I needed this information and I wasn't going to tell him where it was going. If he was scared enough of the Mayor to break his _code_ , then I have no doubt if she asked, Archie would say why I was using this information. The less the Madame Mayor knows, the better in my opinion.

Archie told me the whole story. Unsurprisingly, it was all the Madame Mayor's doing. She set Emma up just to make her look bad in front of Henry. I chuckled quietly as I was about to leave the Doc's office that night, "Jesus, she's fucking crazy."

He looked at me as if he were disapproving my choice of words, but didn't say anything, "She sure is…but are we done now?"

"Yes, Doc," I nodded. "You're off the hook."

He eyed me suspiciously, "You didn't record me, did you?"

I cocked my eyebrow impressed as I laughed, "Not at all, Doc. But hey – I'm impressed that you'd think I'd do that, though. Like I said, I'm not in this to get you into trouble. This is my business and it won't come back to you."

He rolled his eyes unimpressed, but then sighed as he looked at me, trying to do his job, "You should really come and visit me more often, Piper. So, we can talk and I can help you."

I gasped playfully shocked, "You think there's something wrong, with _me_? No way!"

He rolled his eyes, "Just something to think about."

"Can't afford your services, Doc," I rolled my eyes as I started to walk away. "We've been over this."

"Maybe you should fix what you have here in Storybrooke instead of using what money you are saving to run away from your problems!" he called to me.

I turned back to him and laughed, "Even you can't fix what's wrong with me, Doc."

I told Emma about what had happened with the whole frame job situation a day later at the diner. She was really pleased with the information that I had given her. She wanted to tell Graham about what had happened, but I told her that the Doc wouldn't talk anymore. I had bothered him enough and that was that. I didn't want to push him more than I had to. That practice was all he had, I didn't want to get him trouble with the ethics board if I didn't have to.

Emma was still happy with what I did though. I think I gained some trust points with her, and that's always a good first step. Throughout the week, I learned mostly basic stuff about her. Importantly, I learned that she had simply been sleeping in her car ever since Granny kicked her out. The Mayor was extremely pleased to hear that.

"Hopefully with that news," the Mayor had said darkly over our next telephone call. "Ms. Swan will be leaving Storybrooke very shortly."

The Mayor was probably right, but from what I understood, it sounded like Emma wasn't going to be leaving anytime soon. It was more of a gut feeling than a definite fact though, so I didn't tell the Madame Mayor. I wasn't going to tell her anything until I knew everything was fact rather than assumption.

It was now a Friday night and oddly enough I was working at Granny's. I rarely work here during the night because I'm generally unavailable due to my shifts at the Rabbit Hole, but tonight, I was free and Granny was shorthanded again. There were a few people in the diner, but the ones that caught my attention were Dr. Whale and Mary Margaret. I guess Dr. Whale finally puckered up the courage to ask the schoolteacher out. Unfortunately, for the poor woman, he seemed to have lost interest in her.

I rolled my eyes at him as I saw his eyes linger on Ruby's ass while Mary Margaret was speaking. She looked quite nervous as she was talking about how she had 15 kids in her class. I wish I wasn't behind the counter…I wanted to subtly walk by him and _accidentally_ smack his head with a menu. Mary Margaret didn't deserve to be treated so poorly.

Ruby had finally finished cleaning the table she was leaning over when the schoolteacher finally realized that Mr. Assface Doctor Man wasn't listening. She called for Ruby and asked for the cheque right away not wanting to be here any longer. I nodded approving of what she did. Good on you Mary Margaret. You can do _way_ better than Dr. Whale…that's for certain.

Ruby nodded at her and then came behind the counter to get her cheque ready. She sighed quietly as she looked at the couple and then to me confused, "What happened between them? I thought they were hitting it off."

I laughed quietly, "Your ass happened."

"Hey!" she playfully hit me. "What the hell are you talking about?"

"As you were clearing that," I carefully gestured to the window table nonchalantly. "Mr. Scumbag Jackoff wouldn't stop staring at you. Mary Margaret had enough."

"Well," she sighed as she playfully smoothed her shorts. "Good for her. But hey, I'm a good way to test your man. If he stares at my ass while _you're_ speaking. He's out."

I tried to hold back a laugh, but I burst quietly, "I love that you'd _want_ to be that test."

"I mean, come on!" she smirked. "If your man is staring at _you_ and not _this_ ass, you know it's meant to be."

I laughed again, "You're unbelievable, you know?"

"Should I go and tease Whale?" she smirked playfully.

"That, my dear, is up to you!" I chuckled at her ridiculousness. She finished up her bill for Mary Margaret as someone asked me for another drink. I looked back to the couple who were awkwardly not saying anything to each other at the table. The teacher looked so disgruntled and I felt bad for her. I turned back to Ruby quickly, "If you are going to tease Dr. McDouche, can you give him smack on the head for me?"

"For Mary Margaret's honor?" she smirked quietly.

"Exactly." I chuckled. "I mean, that poor woman deserves some kind of payback for such a shitty date."

"My thoughts exactly, Piper," she winked as she finished up her cheque and then headed back over to their table.

The next day passed by rather uneventfully. It was kind of disappointing really. The only interesting thing that I heard was from Emma herself. She said that she was for sure going to stay in Storybrooke, but was having trouble finding a place to stay. "So, if you hear of any openings," she smiled at me hopefully. "Let me know!"

I gave her a nod and then went on my way. I would have to tell the Madame Mayor of this news the next time we speak. I'm certain she'll be rather unexcited to hear that update, but I'm sure she'd rather hear it from a reliable source than from someone random and be unsure of it all day.

It was evening now and I was getting ready for my shift at the Rabbit Hole. My phone buzzed suddenly and I was shocked to hear it. I don't normally get calls at this hour, but I answered it anyway without looking at who was calling. I assumed it was Ruby or Ashley.

"Hello?" I answered nonchalantly as I was getting dressed.

"We need to talk." I heard the deadly voice of the Madame Mayor on the other end. Aw shit…what did I do now?

I gulped my fear down, "I thought I you were coming into the diner tomorrow for an update about Emma."

"This isn't about that," she huffed agitated. "We need to meet, right now."

"I have work at the Rabbit Hole in fifteen minutes."

"That's why I took the liberty and cancelled your shift. They're going to cover it for tonight."

I felt rather frustrated that she would do that, but this must mean something serious is happening…which meant a lot of money. Probably more than I would make tonight anyway. I took a breath before I spoke again, "Where do you want to meet?"

"The hospital."

"Uh…are you okay?"

"Yes, yes," she sounded flustered. "Just meet me there in ten minutes." She hung up before I could say anything else.

The air was cool as I walked up to the hospital. It was just inside the doors that I saw the Madame Mayor waiting for me. Saying that she looked stressed would be a large understatement. She looked like she was trying to keep her cool, but wasn't doing a great job at it. She was fidgeting with her bag and couldn't keep still. Her expression and posture changed as soon as I entered, though. She huffed irritated as I approached, "Nice of you to finally show up."

"Hey," I crossed my arms. "You're the one who called me on such short notice and switched up my night. I was in my work uniform. I figured I should change into something less _scandalous_ and be appropriate in front of my _Madame Mayor_."

She looked at me for a moment and then took a breath, realizing what I had said was true, "You're right," she chuckled. "Those uniforms that they put you in there are revolting."

"Exactly," I smirked at her lightheartedly. I wanted to change the feel of this conversation. "So…what can I do for you Madame Mayor? Why did you want to meet at the hospital?"

She looked at me for a moment, but then an unexpected smile came to her face, "There's someone I'd like you to see."

I cocked my eyebrow confused, but followed her anyway, "Alright then, lead the way."

It was pretty much empty here at this time. There were a few nurses still running around, but other than patients, this place was deserted. It was hardly visiting hours, but because I was with the Mayor, we were pretty much allowed to do anything. I continued to follow her until we hit an area that was decorated nicely with GET WELL SOON signs and kids drawings. It was really cute, actually. This must have been the volunteer outreach program. I remember Mary Margaret talking about it on her date with Whale.

The room was empty other than a patient in a semi-private room. It was made of glass, so literally, everyone could see them…that's why I say semi-private. I couldn't really see the patient, from here, but that's when the Mayor stepped in front of me so I was unable to look further. I gazed up at her confused, "Uh…is there something important here we need to discuss? I mean…these drawings are pretty adorable. Truly museum worthy."

She rolled her eyes at me, "Have you ever been to this part of the hospital before?"

I shook my head, still feeling confused, "I don't generally like hospitals. I don't even remember the last time I saw a doctor for medicinal reasons."

She looked at me curiously, "Interesting, follow me."

I did as she said and we headed into the patient's room. I felt a little uncomfortable doing this, I mean…they seem to be sleeping, but what if they wake up and catch us spying on them? The Mayor refused to allow me to look upon the patient's face, as she kept blocking them. I was feeling a little frustrated, but then she turned to me again, "This is why I brought you here, tonight. I want you to tell me everything you know about this man."

She stepped aside suddenly so I could gaze upon his face. As soon as I looked at it I felt weightless. It was strange, I felt like my head was about to explode, but it didn't hurt. I could see images flashing across my eyes that weren't possible. I was no longer in the hospital with the Madame Mayor. I was in a castle and I could see this man, and what I believed to be his wife looking down at me worriedly. It was as if I had been hurt. He was wearing odd clothes…it looked like he was going to a renaissance fair and she was wearing this dramatic gown. I looked down at my hands. I was bleeding. I winced, realizing that I should be in pain.

The world started to erupt in swirling colour again. I felt so disoriented. I saw his face and all the sudden, I knew everything about him. I could hear his voice. I could see his see his name. I could see his wife yelling after me. She was telling me to go find her husband named David. I knew this family…and apparently, I knew them well.

The world erupted into colour again. They reappeared in their renaissance clothing, dancing. They didn't look happy, but they danced at this ball. I was in the crowd watching them.

It flashed again, and I could hear them fighting in the real world. I was outside as I saw David leave telling his wife Kathryn that he needed to be left alone. I looked at their lovely home. It said Nolan on the mailbox.

My head erupted and I wanted to scream all the sudden. This was too much and I wanted it to stop.

As if my wish had been granted, the world suddenly went black. Did I just die?

"Piper," I could hear a voice hazily waking me out of this. "Are you alright?"

"Woah," I slowly opened my eyes and realized I was on the hospital floor. "What on earth?"

I realized it was the Mayor still looking at me. She looked a bit worried but seemed to know that I was okay. She helped me sit up, as I rubbed my eyes so confused about what had just happened. I looked around the room. It was as if nothing had happened, "What the hell was that?"

The Mayor looked confused, "What was what? You just passed out. Apparently, Mr. Doe has that effect on women, even when he's in a coma."

"Mr. Doe?" I cocked my eyebrow confused at her. "That's not his name."

The Mayor looked extremely smug for a millisecond, but then her facial expression changed to concerned, "Whatever do you mean, dear? Do you know something about this man?"

I stood myself up slowly. I wanted to look at the man again, but I was petrified it would make me go into that hallucinogenic state once more. I slowly but surely looked upon him again and luckily, nothing changed. I took a deep breath and approached him. I had never met this man before, and yet I oddly felt as if I knew everything about him. How could I know about him and his life without ever meeting him before? I looked at him for another second and then looked to the Mayor confused, "I know everything about him."

That night I had told the Mayor literally everything I knew about David and his wife Kathryn. Even the weird bits about them in their renaissance clothing to see if she could make sense of that. She gave me no peace of mind, but she gave me a thick bundle of cash for my efforts. As we left the hospital she smiled at me, "Thank you for your services, Piper. And don't worry about what happened. I'm sure you'll be okay."

I nodded as I gulped nervously, "I sure hope so, Madame Mayor. Will we still be meeting up tomorrow?"

"Another day," she said as she did her coat up. "I'm busy tomorrow. Is there anything urgent I should hear?"

"Other than the fact that Emma is going to be for sure staying in Storybrooke now…not really. She's trying to find a place to stay, but isn't having any luck."

"Ugh," the Mayor made a disgusted noise. "Figures…ah well, it was to be expected. At least I'm prepared." She winked as she offered me another twenty.

I took it graciously, "Thank you, Madame Mayor."

"Anytime, Piper."

I nodded at her and was about to walk away, but she then called me suddenly, "Oh and Piper!"

"Yes?" I turned back.

"For now," she approached me again. "Can we keep what happened tonight between us? The last thing I want is for everyone to know about Mister Nolan."

"Don't you want to inform his family?"

"Oh, I will." She smiled darkly. "But for now, lets keep it between us." She offered me another hundred.

I laughed surprised as I took it, "Now you're speaking my language."

"Excellent," she chuckled mysteriously. "Have a good night, dear. Always a pleasure."

I nodded as I imagined all the money I had earned tonight in my purse, "Yes, Madame Mayor. It's always good working with you."

I could barely sleep that night. I kept waking up every hour or two due to seeing David's or Kathryn's face. They weren't nightmares but my mind was on overdrive. It refused to sleep and it scared me slightly. All I wanted to know was _why_ I knew this information all the sudden…and why it hit me like a truck. The worst part was, I couldn't tell anyone about it. Yeah, I earned some extra cash because of this secrecy, but holy crap…I didn't think these visions would affect me like this.

I kept seeing David in these renaissance clothes talking to me, but I couldn't hear what he was saying. Or Kathryn waving me off to leave her alone. I kept waking up so confused. All I wanted to do was to sleep but I couldn't. My mind refused to sleep. Like me, it wanted to know what the hell was going on.

I felt exhausted at Granny's that morning. My mind was still racing with these images of David and his wife. I was so exhausted, but my brain refused to shut up. Ruby asked me on several occasions if I was okay. She sensed that something was up, but I shook my head, "I'm fine."

Granny even asked me if I was okay, "Working those double shifts are finally starting to catch up with you, Dear. You're burning out."

"I'm fine, Granny." I lied as I felt my mind racing.

The diner was rather busy to my dismay. It was Sunday and everyone was wanting a nice breakfast. Henry and Emma were in one of the booths. I was surprised they were actually together, but then I heard that Henry had lied to his mother about his whereabouts…so that made sense. Emma looked to be wearing a shirt that didn't belong to her. It actually looked like a shirt the Mayor would wear. I laughed to myself thinking about Henry going into his mother's closet and stealing a shirt for Emma.

A bit after I had served them, Mary Margaret came into the diner. She looked rather excited as she approached their booth. I offered her coffee, but she shook her head at me as she sat down. I smiled realizing she was over her date with Whale. Good. She should know that she can do better than that Scumbag.

Even though my mind was racing, my skills of snooping were undamaged. As I worked, I listened in.

Mary Margaret looked at them excitedly, "He woke up."

Emma looked shocked, "What?"

"I knew it." Henry grinned at his birth mother.

"I mean," Mary Margaret clarified. "He didn't _wake up_ , wake up, but he grabbed my hand." What the hell are they talking about?

"He's remembering!" Henry beamed at her. "What did the doctor say?"

A doctor? Wait a minute. They aren't talking about who I think they're talking about…are they? My brain continued to race and I felt a tenseness building up in my shoulders. After a moment of panic though, I shook it off with a huff. They can't be talking about that Piper, you're being paranoid.

Mary Margaret continued, "That I imagined it, but I'm not crazy. I _know_ it happened."

Henry looked at her enthused, "We have to go back! You have to read to him again."

She thought for a second, but then enthusiastically said, "Let's go." Both she and Henry got up out of the booth.

Emma seemed just about as flustered as I did as she got up with them, "Wait! Wait! What?"

"If I got through to him, if we made a connection –" Mary Margaret smiled, trying to clarify herself.

"You don't believe –" Emma interrupted her, but then the teacher talked back.

"That he's Prince Charming? Of course not. Somehow, in someway, I touched him." she left out the door.

Emma quickly turned to me and offered me cash, "Sorry, Piper. Gotta go."

I laughed gently, "Of course Emma, but what was that about? Are you guys okay?"

"Oh yeah," she nodded quickly. "Henry has this theory about a Jon Doe in a coma. But I gotta run, I'll talk to you later!"

As she handed me the money, I froze. The Jon Doe that they were talking about _was_ Mr. Nolan. My throat went dry as I continued to feel my mind race with images of him and Kathryn flying through my head. Wait…Henry said he was Prince Charming…and he thinks Mary Margaret is Snow White. That means he thinks that they should be together, but – he has a wife already.

My head was starting to pound. I felt sick all the sudden because there was so much going on in my head right now. I looked around and felt disoriented. Surprising me suddenly, Ruby approached me looking extremely concerned, "Piper?" her voice was slowed down and muffled. "Piper, are you okay?"

Flashes started before my eyes again. I could see David in a forest. He was in a carriage with Kathryn, but then it quickly changed and he was now following this thief who appeared to have stolen something from him. I felt myself hold my head and then Ruby's hands supporting me up, but I still couldn't see her. I could only see David staring smugly up at this woman in a trap. I looked closer at the woman and realized she looked like Mary Margaret.

I blacked out.

"Piper!" I heard someone yelling at and shaking me worriedly. "Piper, what the hell?"

"What?" I opened my eyes wearily to see both Granny, Ruby and some other customers looking at me anxiously.

Ruby hugged me as she helped me up, "You scared the shit out of me! Are you okay?"

"I kind of feel like I'm going to throw up," I laughed honestly. Unlike last night…the visions came with both a racing brain and nausea. "I'm fine other than that."

"The hell you are," Granny kneeled down and touched my forehead. "You're burning up."

"I'm fine, Granny." I lied as I was trying to stand up.

She rolled her eyes not believing me, "Do you work at the Rabbit Hole tonight?"

"Yeah." I sighed, not wanting to think about it.

"Well, you're not anymore. You need to go home and get some rest."

Unknowingly to Granny, that is the last thing my brain will let me do right now, "I'm fine."

She pfft at me, "Ruby take her to the B&B and then get Ashley to stay with her. She needs to rest. She's killing herself."

I was unable to dispute, I was feeling extremely weak. I was popping in and out of reality and Ruby could see that something was extremely amiss as she was helping me back to my room, "Please tell me what the hell is going on?"

"I can't," I shook my head. "The Mayor paid me not to tell anyone."  
"You know I won't tell anyone anything, Piper."

"Another problem," I laughed in pain. "I have no idea how to explain what's going on without sounding like a crazy person."

"Try me."

"I can't here. Maybe later."

"Come on, Piper," she sighed worriedly. "I'm scared."

"I'll be fine."

"You're the sickest I've ever seen you!" Ruby yelped as we got into the B&B. "I don't care what you say, I know something's wrong. Does it have anything to do with what Emma said?"

"What?" I had totally forgotten about Emma and Henry this point. My mind was focused on David, his wife…and Mary Margaret being a part of these strange visions now. I winced as my head pulsed.

Ruby looked concerned, "Please tell me what's wrong?"

"Finish your shift at work," I sighed defeatedly, not caring anymore. "And then I'll tell you."

"Okay," we headed into my room and she helped me onto my bed. "Please try and get some sleep."

"Would if I could." I sighed softly feeling another apparition of Mary Margaret's face forcing its way into my vision. It was odd though, instead of her regular pixie cut, she had long dark hair…she also looked like she was going to a renaissance festival. Jesus, were Mary Margaret, David and his wife a part of some LARPing crew?

Ruby knelt down and looked at me. I could see her face through Mary Margaret's. She was trying to get me to focus, "Please be okay. I don't think I could survive in this town without you."

I laughed, "I'm not dying, Ruby. I'm just going mentally insane. There's no harm in that."

She looked at me concerned, "If you need me to stay, I will."

"Go," I sighed as I nosedived into a pillow. "Granny will kick your ass if you don't."

"I'm sure she wouldn't."

"Go, Ruby," I sighed into the pillow. "I'll be fine."

She looked rather unwilling to leave but then sighed, "Please call me if you need me. I'll make sure Ash is here ASAP."

"I will," I squeezed my eyelids together to try and chill my head out. Unfortunately, it refused to work. I still saw David and Mary Margaret looking at each other.

I heard Ruby leave and after a minute or two of silence I looked up from the pillow. I saw no visions for once. I smiled relieved, but then a searing pain cut across my brain. I yelped at this rude and unexpected shock. Another vision clouded my brain. I could see Mary Margaret and David in their costumes fighting these grotesque monster things on a rickety old bridge. I yelped as one slashed down at David.

My mind flashed again and all I could see was them kissing. My mind was so confused and filled with information. I honestly felt like my head was just going explode. There was too much. I felt my head pulsating in pain. After a moment of watching Mary Margaret and David smile at each other, I blacked out completely.

I felt so weak, I couldn't even move my arms or legs. I refused to open my eyes because I was afraid of the visions in might produce. My eyes were closed, but they were blank. My mind finally felt somewhat calm. I sighed realizing that I had finally gotten some needed sleep. Surprising me a gentle clearing of the throat woke me up.

I tried to get up, but my arms and legs were bound to a bed. I opened my eyes surprised. I was relieved to see no visions but was incredibly confused to find that I wasn't in my room. I was in a hospital bed and was being held down by restraints on my arms and legs, "What the –"

"Ah ah," startling me completely, the Madame Mayor was in the room with me. We were alone. "Relax dear, you don't want to get yourself worked up again."

"What – what –" I looked around completely confused. "What the hell is going on here?"

She sighed softly as she stood and walked over towards my bed, "Turns out seeing Mr. Nolan took a toll on you."

"What are you talking about?" I sighed as I was about to rub my face, but couldn't due to the restraints.

"You had a mental breakdown, dear. You were screaming in your sleep and were out of control. Gave the town quite the scare."

I looked at my restraints confused, "What the fuck?"

The Mayor chuckled, "My thoughts exactly."

"What happened?"

"Well," she sighed softly as she sat on the bed. "You were right about Mr. Nolan's identity. Interestingly, he actually went missing for a few hours. Luckily, Ms. Swan and the Sheriff found him though, and because of you, we could reunite the family."

"So," I looked at her confused. "Kathryn and him are together now?"

"Well, yes, but he doesn't remember anything…that coma took quite the toll on him as well."

"I would imagine so," I laughed softly. "I'm glad that they could find each other, though."

"Me too, dear," she smiled. "Oh, and to cover our tracks about how we found Mrs. Nolan, I told Emma and the Sheriff that David had been talking in his sleep…It won't come back to you."

I smiled at her, "Thanks…but can I get out of these restraints now…I'm feeling better. I'm not having weird visions anymore."

She chuckled as she stood up and picked up her purse, "That's up to the doctor…"

"Ugh," I sighed. "It better not be Whale."

"Hate to break the bad news, but…"

"Gross." I whispered to myself.

She chuckled as she was about to leave the room, "I'll let a nurse know you're awake, so they can get those off you. I think you have some other visitors as well."

"Thank you, Madame Mayor," I sighed feeling relieved that this was over. "Always good working with you."

She nodded, "Always a pleasure, Piper."

A nurse unleashed me a couple minutes later, and with her came a relieved looking Granny, Ruby and Ashley. I beamed seeing them, "Sorry I worried you guys."

"Worried isn't even the half of it," Granny sighed. "You scared the shit out of us, Piper."

"I thought you had lost your mind," Ashley took my hand. "You were literally screaming in your sleep. I tried to wake you, but you just kept screaming."

"Was I saying anything?" I laughed.

"It wasn't funny, Piper," she sighed. "You just kept yelling gibberish. Every once in a while, I would hear you say random words like, "troll", "ring" and "snow". I thought you were gone."

I thought about those words, but they didn't have any correlation. I don't even remember dreaming while I was out. All I remember is the information about the Nolans, and then for some reason, them LARPing with Mary Margaret and some scary looking creatures. It didn't make much sense.

I shook my head as I rubbed my face, "Well…its over now."

"It better be," Ruby laughed. "You gave me a heart attack."

Granny nodded, "I almost had a literal one. You need to take a break, Dear."

"You know I can't do that."

"You have to," Ruby chuckled. "Doctors orders."

"God, damn it, Whale." I sighed irritated and they all laughed.

I checked out of the hospital that night. Apparently, I had been out for a day and a half and according to Doctor McAssRash, I had some sort of psychotic break due to lack of sleep. He cleared me though thanks to Doc Hop saying that I was able to leave. I appreciated him doing that considering I had given him a hard time a few days ago. He really was a good guy, and I wanted to make it up to him somehow.

Ruby and Ash took me back to the B&B. They were going to stay with me tonight, just to ease their own minds. For some reason, I knew I was completely fine now. I don't know what had happened, but I knew it wasn't going to happen again. It's like something had taken over my system, but now it was gone and it just left me with so many unanswered questions. I needed to know why the hell I knew so much about David without ever meeting him before…I needed to know what was up with him and Kathryn's relationship…but last of all, I needed to know what Mary Margaret had to do with all of this.

I guess, that's another day in Storybrooke, for you. There always seems to be more questions than answers…


	4. Chapter 4 - The Price of Gold

The Price of Gold

Another day, another secret to hear. Even though I felt fine, Granny insisted that I take at least a day off. Ruby and Ash made sure that I stayed out of the diner that next morning. I sighed irritated as Ruby scolded me to stand down and take the day off, "I don't give a shit if you leave the B&B," she barked as she pointed her finger at me. "You just need to take a day to chill! You were in the hospital _yesterday_ and you scared the shit out of us."

"I. Am. Fine," I insisted with crossed arms. "I just had a bit of an episode…Everything's a-okay now."  
"Piper," Ashley looked at me in disbelief. "Can you _please_ , for me and the sake of my sanity, take the day off?"

I sighed looking into her eyes and then to her round belly. Even though Ruby and her were very concerned with me last night, every once in a while, I could see Ash's face twinging in pain. She was trying to remain subtle about this pain, but unfortunately for her…things were hard to hide from me. I was concerned something might be up with her and the baby. I crossed my arms stubbornly, "Fine. I'll take the day off, but you gotta let me take you to the doctors before your shift for a check up."

"What?" she looked at me questioningly. "If anyone should be getting a check up, it should be you, Piper."

"Ah ah!" I squinted my eyes at her suspiciously. "Don't give me that. I saw you wincing in pain last night. Something's up with you. Are you okay, Ash?"

She sighed sitting down on the bed. Ruby looked concerned now as she knelt in front of us. Ashley sighed defeatedly, "I'm fine, Pipes. I'm more concerned about you at the moment."

"I'm _fine_ ," I laughed in disbelief as I grabbed her hand. "You have a _child_ inside of you right now! They need _way_ more attention than I do. So, is there something wrong?"

Ruby grabbed her other hand, "Ash, we got you. You know that. Tell us what's wrong."

She looked between Ruby and I for a moment or two and then took a deep breath, "I was in quite a bit of pain last night. I don't know what was up, but I thought it might be due to stress over Piper's thing."

I smacked her hand gently to scold her, "You know better than not to tell us when something's up with the baby, Ash! Come on," I stood up. "If I can't go to work, then I'm taking you to the hospital to get a check-up."

"I have work in a couple hours, Piper," she rolled her eyes. "I won't make it into the doctor."

"Granny won't care," Ruby squeezed her hand. "And even if she does, she'll have to go through me before she gets mad at you."

She took a breath and then looked up at us, "Thanks, guys, but if I can get to work…then I'd like to."

I laughed, "You're more like me than you'd probably want to admit, Ash."

* * *

While Ruby headed for her early morning shift at the diner, I took Ashley to the hospital to get a check up. At this stage of her pregnancy, she might be having contractions, and I want her to feel secure about her birthing plan. I know she's nervous about having this baby, but I think she's more nervous about her life after the birth.

She doesn't like to talk about it, but she knows that most people think that she can't raise this baby. In my opinion, that's completely untrue. I think she's more capable than both she and the rest of the town knows. She is determined and I think that people should give her credit for that. Plus, she'll always have Ruby and I to back her up.

As we walked down the street, Ash was quiet. She was worried about her baby, so I could understand not wanting to talk. She looked very stressed so I gave her a gentle tap on the back to reassure her, "No need to worry. Everything's going to be fine."

She nodded but didn't acknowledge me otherwise. She continued walking as I looked around town. Everyone was out and about now. The streets were as busy as they could be in Storybrooke. Occasionally, I could see people glancing cautiously at me. I think they must have seen me during my episode, so I think they're wondering if I'm about to go into an uncontrollable screaming fit again. I didn't take offence to the looks and just kept walking.

Interestingly, I saw Emma taking Henry to the bus stop. So much for the Mayor's iron fist. I guess she can't stop Henry from seeing Emma. Doesn't matter how much she wants him to stay away from her.

Even more shockingly, just as the bus left, the Sheriff pulled up in front of Emma with his sirens on. Oh shit, what was this about? Was Madame Mayor going to arrest her for something _again_?

Ash sighed and then looked at me playfully with a small chuckle, "I can walk ahead if you want to go snoop."

My instincts wanted me to go and see what was happening, but I knew I needed to take care of Ash, "No, no –"

She rolled her eyes at me, "Just go, Piper. I'll probably be in the waiting room for a while anyways. Just meet me there!"

I looked at Graham getting out of his car and then back to Ash, "Are you sure?"

"Yes!" she laughed. "Go now or you're going to miss it!"

I beamed at her. She was such a good friend, "Thank you!"

She rolled her eyes as she started walking towards the hospital again. I quickly, but subtly put on my sunglasses and walked towards the cop car. About fifteen feet away from the incident, I was able to perfectly situate myself down on a bench. From where Emma was, the cop car was blocking me and Graham would not be able to see me lurking. Hopefully, this'll be worth something. If I ditch poor pregnant Ashley for nothing, that would make me feel bad.

I was only able to start listening as Graham was in the middle of a thought, "For your help finding that coma patient. We all owe you a debt of gratitude." Ah yes, Emma helped Graham find David.

"Well, what do I get," Emma smirked at him. "A commendation? Key to the city?"

"How about a job?" Graham said confidently. Wow. Graham really? I highly _doubt_ Madame Mayor would be pleased with this. I doubt you have her backing on this decision. He continued, "I could use a deputy."

For Graham's sake, I wanted her to say no and luckily, she did end up rejecting his offer. There was no way that the Madame Mayor had given Graham her blessing on this. He would have gotten into some real shit if Emma had actually accepted his offer.

I like the Sheriff. I don't want him getting into unnecessary trouble. And boy oh boy would he be in some shit if he went behind the Mayor's back and successfully made Emma his deputy.

Graham offered her a card, "Why don't you think about it and stay a while?"

Emma looked at him and then rolled her eyes, "Sure I'll think about it."

"That's all I want to hear," he smirked as walked around his car again. I made sure to make myself look extra inconspicuous as I entered his sight. He opened his car door and then looked back to Emma, "Now, I have some sheriffing to do, but call me when you have an answer for me."

"Will do, Sheriff," Emma looked at him with a chuckle. As the Sheriff left, she walked towards Granny's. Interesting…I'll have to let the Mayor know about this. I'm sure she'll want a heads up about Graham. Luckily, he won't get into too much trouble considering Emma rejected his offer, for now.

I stood up and with this new information on my mind and started walking towards the hospital again.

* * *

It was a quick walk to the hospital, but unfortunately, I kept getting stopped by people. Lots of people were asking me if I was okay. Even though I don't remember screaming like a banshee in my sleep, a lot of the town did and they were concerned. Marco approached me and touched my shoulder to stop me, "I can tell that you're in a rush," he said quickly. "But I just wanted to make sure you are alright. It was rather scary seeing you like that. Lots of people worry about you."

I smiled at him gently. I appreciated his concern, but I didn't need it, "I'm alright, Marco. No need to worry."

"Please tell me you're at least taking the day off!" he chuckled.

"Unwillingly, yes," I smirked at him. "Granny told me not to come in, and practically forced me to call in at the Rabbit Hole tonight."

"Good for her," he chuckled. "You really should lay down, Dear."

"Not a chance, Marco," I grinned. "Now, I'm sorry, but I really must go meet my friend."

"Of course, Dear," he waved me off. "I'll see you soon."

"Definitely!"

I sighed softly as I left Marco and headed towards the hospital. People stopping me was annoying, but one of the main reasons it was aggravating was because it brought my mind back the visions. Although I wanted to learn more about those weird hallucinations that had taken over my mind, I had no idea where to start and the idea of them just stressed me out. I wish I could speak to David…or Kathryn. Maybe they might recognize me, like I did them…but I don't have time for that now. I can't think about it. I need to focus on my friend.

I was happy when I approached the hospital. I was done talking to people. To my dismay though another, "Piper!" was yelled at me. I wanted to groan out of pure annoyance, but I quickly put a smile on my face and then turned. It was the Madame Mayor herself.

She walked up to me quickly, "What on earth are you doing out here? I would have expected you to be resting after the few days you've had."

I shrugged, "I'm not a rester."

"Isn't that what got you into this mess in the first place?" she crossed her arms at me.

I sighed thinking about what Whale had said. Apparently, my visions and "psychotic break" had something to do with a lack of sleep, but I highly doubted that. Something about that diagnosis just didn't seem accurate to me so I just wrote it off as BS.

I shrugged to the Madame Mayor once more, "I'm fine."

"Whatever you say, Dear," she was about to walk away, but I quickly called her back. I honestly don't know when Granny is going to allow me to work again, so I should give the Mayor info when I can…might as well be now.

"Madame Mayor," I said quickly. "I have something I need to tell you."

"Oh?" she turned.

"Yeah," I nodded. "Graham tried hiring Emma as deputy, but she turned down his offer."

She looked confused, but then nodded accepting what I had said. She seemed to be hiding her true feelings about the situation, "Alright. Anything else?"

I thought quickly. What does Regina like to hear about? Graham, Emma, important events and Henry. Oh yeah! I got something on Henry and Emma, "I also saw Henry walking with Emma this morning…she appeared to be dropping him off at the bus. Considering your feelings about her, I assume Henry did that behind your back…"

She looked a little annoyed that I had said that, but then quickly opened her purse and offered me some cash, "Good work, Piper. Even on your sick days, you're more useful than most."

I smiled surprised by the compliment, "Thank you, Madame Mayor."

"Always a pleasure," she quickly walked away.

I smiled looking down at the unexpected cash that I had made. Although I wanted to count it, I didn't have the time at the moment. I didn't want anyone to see it, so I just stuffed it into my purse and headed into the hospital. Hopefully Ashley's okay.

I walked into the hospital and was slightly worried, but relieved to see that Ashley wasn't in the waiting room. That must mean that the doctor is already with her. To check though I asked the receptionist, and she just affirmed what I had thought. Apparently, they took her in right away when they heard that she was in pain. Good.

* * *

It was about twenty minutes later when she came out. She smiled a little when she saw me, "Hey, how'd it go?"

I looked at her questioningly and shook my head, "You're ridiculous! My stuff doesn't matter. How are you?! Is the baby okay?"

"Yeah," she brushed it off. "It's fine. Dr. Whale just said that the baby could be coming any day now."

I was confused by her tone, "Aren't you happy about that?"

"Uh yeah…" she touched her round tummy. "Just nervous."

"Everything's going to be okay!" I beamed at her. "Ruby and I are with you every step of the way. You know that! We have your back!"  
"Uh yeah…" she said nonchalantly. "Come on, I have to get back to the B&B and get ready for my shift."

I was still confused by her tone, but laughed trying to keep it normal, "Uh alright. Jeez Ash, even days before birth and you refuse to stop working!"

* * *

It was a quiet walk back to the B&B, and the further we walked the more upset Ashley seemed. I had asked her if something was up, but she refused to say anything. She did what I usually did and brushed me off with, "Don't worry, I'm fine."

I wanted to ask again, but I didn't want to upset her. As we entered the B&B and headed into my room to get her stuff she sighed softly to get my attention, "Piper…"

"Yeah, Ash?" I looked at her worriedly. "Are you okay?"

She shook her head, "No…I'm really not."

I felt worry overtake me, "What's wrong, Ash? Did the Doctor say something?"

"No," she shook her head quickly. "It's not about that."

I looked at her confused, "What're you –"

She shook her head again, interrupting me, "I-I'm not keeping the baby, Piper."

"Uh…" I was completely confused by this statement. I knew that she was scared before…but she always seemed to want to keep the baby. She had never mentioned giving the baby away before…Was she having doubts about her capabilities? "What on earth are you talking about?"

She looked like she was about to cry, "I-I can't keep the baby."

"Of course, you can, Ash." I sat her down on the bed and looked at her gently. "You are _more_ than capable of taking care of this baby."

"You don't understand, Piper…" she sniffed, trying to hold back tears. "I-I literally can't keep this baby…"

"What do you mean?" I squeezed her hand. I wanted to understand what she was saying. "You've always said that you want to be a parent…why are you having these worries now?"

"Piper," she sniffed. "I-I do want to be a parent…but I can't keep this baby."

"Why not, Ash?" I looked at her gently. "You know I'll support any decision you want to make, but if you want to be a parent, why can't you keep this baby?"

There were tears in her eyes, "I-I sold the baby, Piper…"

"What?!" I stood up in absolute shock by what she said. What did that even mean? How did I not hear about this? "When?!"

Her voice shook, "Since like the first or second month of my pregnancy…Sean's Dad help me get the deal…"

I was shocked. Was this some sort of joke? Not once did she tell me that she had made such a deal with her ex's dad. As a rule, she generally refused to talk about her ex or his family. They had a complicated past and even _I_ didn't know the whole story. Jeez…and all this time, I just figured that she was going to keep the baby…mine and Ruby's encouragement must have been such a joke to her. I looked at her trying to understand, "Wait…so you've just been keeping up this charade for Ruby and I? Why?"

She sighed as she shook her head, "No, Piper…Ruby knew."

"What?" I felt so confused. What the hell was going on here? "So, Ruby and you have been keeping this from me? Why? I would have supported you."

She looked at me guiltily, "It was me, Piper…I'm an idiot. I should have trusted my head…but for some reason, my gut said not to tell you. I was afraid –"

I interrupted her by slowly putting my hand up and realizing what she was going to say. I couldn't believe it…I felt like I wanted to cry, "You thought…I would sell that information. You thought I would tell people that you sold your baby, didn't you?"

She was silent for a moment as tears ran down her cheeks, "Yeah…I did. Everything in my head told me that you wouldn't…but my gut said not to tell you. I was already so embarrassed by the whole thing…If anyone else knew…"

"But Ruby knew…" I felt myself getting upset, but I tried to hide it. I stood up and walked around the room trying to sort this out. "You guys just left me out of the loop."

"Ruby didn't want to leave you out," she said with tears streaming down her face. "But I convinced her to do it."

"Why?" I just sighed feeling slightly betrayed. "You should know that I would _never_ do anything to hurt you guys! You are my people! You're the closest things I have to any sort of family!"

"I know, Piper," she whispered shakily. "But I couldn't risk it. Everything I told you about wanting to have this baby and raise it are true…I still do want to keep this baby. With _all of my heart,_ I want to keep this baby."

"Then, why don't you?!" I sighed frustrated. "You've been lying rather convincingly to me about keeping it…you might as well!"

"You don't understand, Piper," she whispered afraid.

"Please enlighten me then." I sighed as I sat down and looked at her.

"I'm under contract with Mr. Gold. I'm selling it so he can find it a good home."

"Shit," I whispered to myself. There wasn't anything we could do. Mr. Gold is reasonable under the right circumstances, but when it comes to deals…there's nothing you can really do. If it were anyone else, I may be able to do something about this situation…but when it comes to Gold…I never know how to read him. I can't play him and that is extremely scary to me.

"Yeah, I know," Ashley said as she stood up and walked towards me. "Shit is right…I'm so sorry I lied to you, Piper…"

I shook my head. I couldn't be mad at her. Yeah, I felt betrayed that both her and Ruby lied to me about the baby this whole time…but I couldn't blame Ashley for her worry. She knows what I do for a living…she's seen me give away people's deepest secrets for money before. What would stop me from giving away hers for the right price? Yeah, she's close to me…but what does that matter if money is involved?

I've painted that picture for myself and I can't blame Ashley for being wary of it. Especially with a secret like this. Yeah, I'm definitely not happy, but I can't be angry at her or Ruby for keeping this from me.

"I can't believe you guys think that low of me," I laughed hurt. "You think that I'd sell _your_ secrets."

"I'm sorry, Piper," she whispered. "I wanted to tell you, but there was always this small feeling that you might say something."

"I _would never_ ," I felt so embarrassed. I couldn't believe my two closest friends would think that way of me. I couldn't believe it…and yet at the same time I could. It was my own fault that they thought about me like this. I couldn't blame them for that. "You guys need to know that," I felt the tears starting to slide out of my eyes. "I would _never_ reveal any of your secrets. Not for any amount of money in the world! You guys are my family. I wouldn't hurt you. It would kill me if I hurt you guys."

Ashley took my hand and squeezed it, "I know that too…it was just this one nagging feeling that made me keep this from you and I'm sorry. I should have known better."

"No," I shook my head embarrassed. "You did the right thing. You should always follow your gut. I obviously need to tune up my intentions though…Gosh, and you saw me go snoop on Graham and Emma today…" I covered my eyes.

"Piper," she gently took my hands away from my eyes. "I know what you need to do to survive. I also know you want to get out of this town…Ruby and I do as well. You're going to be the first of us out of here because of what you do."

"Ha," I sighed with a soft laugh as I wiped my eyes. "I wouldn't leave without you guys. Hell, I'd help you guys get out of here as well."

She nodded with a soft, shaky sigh, "I know you would too…"

We were quiet for about five minutes, just thinking. Like I said previously, I was hurt…but I couldn't be mad. Ashley had every right to withhold her secret from me…it just hurt that she felt like she needed to keep it from me to protect it.

She looked at me softly, "I wish I had told you sooner…maybe you could have helped me get out of this contract with Gold…"

"Yeah," I sighed softly as I wiped my eyes. "The only way you'd be able to keep that baby now is if you hightail it and get out of Storybrooke. Unfortunately, I don't have a lot of dirt on Gold, and the stuff I do have is very basic…I can't blackmail him. Maybe I could sell him some information that he might want, but he's never wanted to buy from me before."

She squeezed my hand as her lips quivered, "Look at you…already trying to find a solution."

"Yeah," I sniffed. "Well, it's what I do."

"I know…" she looked down. "I should have told you sooner."

"Nothing you can do to change that now," I shrugged as I stood up and went to the bathroom to check what the damage was to my makeup. "Besides, it's my fault anyways. I got stuff I need to work on, obviously. Is there really nothing we can do to change that contract?"

"No," she shook her head as she came into the bathroom. "Although I would like to keep the baby…I think everyone's right. I'm too young."

"You're capable, Ash," I whispered. "I know you are."

She sighed softly as she looked at me in the mirror, "If there was something that I could do…I would. I can't change anything, though. You might have been able to if I had told you sooner…but right now, there's nothing I can do to change this."

* * *

Ashley left for work about an hour later. She continued to cry on and off. She kept saying how guilty she felt that she hadn't told me, but I didn't want her to feel guilty. It was my fault and this was a wake-up call for me. I needed to straighten out my intentions and I wanted to have another conversation with both Ash and Ruby about this. They're my people…they're the only ones I need to trust me. They need to know that I even though I've betrayed a lot of people's trust before, I would never betray theirs.

It was now nighttime. I hadn't left my room. All day I had just been trying to scrape up an idea to help Ashley, but there was literally nothing I could do. I thought about leaving and trying to sell information to Gold and attempt to convince him to cancel the contract, but it seemed pointless. I just knew he would refuse my offer and send me on my way. He didn't trust me and even though that was smart of him…I didn't like it.

A knock on my door interrupted my deep-thinking session. I quickly got up and opened it to reveal a nervous looking Ruby, "Hey."

"Hey," I smiled a little at her. "Is everything okay?"

"Obviously not," she sighed as she came into the room and sat down on my bed. "Ash told me about what happened. Are you okay?"

"No," I laughed shakily with a shrug. "But hey, it's a wake-up call. I need to work on myself a little harder, I guess."

She shook her head, "You're perfectly fine, Piper. I _know_ you'd never tell anyone my secrets. I trust you. You're the only one who puts up with me unconditionally. That's why I hide literally nothing about my life from you."

"Other than the fact that you like, Billy." I smirked.

She rolled her eyes, "You know I don't know how I feel about him! But anyways, Ash feels that way too, you know. I know it doesn't seem like it because she kept this from you, but she does."

"She was cautious," I shrugged. "And I understand that."

"She wanted to tell you," Ruby looked at me worriedly. "But something was just telling her not to…I really wanted to tell you, but I couldn't betray her trust. I tried convincing her to tell you multiple times…but I could tell she was just scared."

"And I get that," I nodded reassuringly. "Believe me, Ruby. There are no hard feelings…sure it hurts quite a bit and it has me thinking about changes I need to make, but I'm fine. I promise."

"Yeah well," Ruby smirked. "You haven't exactly had the easiest week. I just wanted to make sure you were okay."

"I'm fine," I insisted with a laugh. "I promise. I just got a bruised self esteem…nothing to worry about."

She pouted at me playfully, "Poor, Piper."

"Poor me," I laughed sitting down on the bed next to her. "So…any ideas on how we're going to help Ash keep this kid? Baby's coming any day now…there's no time to lose."

She shrugged, "I've been trying to come up with something, but whenever we're even brainstorming Ash starts doubting herself. She begins to say stuff like "oh I'm too young", "I can't raise this, baby", and my favourite "the people are right…I can't do this"."

"She did that to me as well today," I sighed. "I've been raking my brain all day and I've got nothing…she would have to leave town at this point."

Ruby opened her eyes widely at me, "Wait a minute Piper! That might be a good idea!"

I looked at her confused, "What do you mean? She can't just leave…"

"Yes, she can!" she grinned. "Piper, you're a genius."

I looked at her confused, "That was simply just a suggestion! There's so much more than just saying she's going to leave Storybrooke, Ruby! She can't just go! She won't have a support system, a job to go to, or hell! Even a place to stay! She's got a bit of money saved, but that's it! She can't leave…not without a plan!"

She sighed realizing what I was saying, "You're right…but it's a start of a plan."

"Hell," I sighed. "I don't even know if she'd be wanting us to make a plan for her. She doubts herself so much and she doesn't have to. People just suck and give her their shitty opinions that she doesn't need to hear."

"You can say that again…" she sighed.

KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK!

Both Ruby and I jumped in surprised at the slamming on my door. I almost was afraid to open it, but a small frantic voice called to me, "Piper! Please open up!" It was Ashley.

I quickly got up and ran to the door, "Ashley? Are you okay?"

As soon as I opened the door I could just tell that something was wrong. She looked extremely scared and her eyes kept darting everywhere. She kept looking behind her as if someone had been chasing her. I looked at her worriedly, "Ashley, what's wrong?! Are you okay?"

"No, no, no," she shook her head quickly and ran inside so I could shut the door. "You guys, I did something…something _so incredibly_ stupid."

Ruby and I both cocked our heads at her, "What're you talking about, Ash?"

"I-I," she took a deep breath, but then shakily breathed out. "I-I ransacked Mr. Gold's pawnshop to try and find our contract…" I was not liking where this was going. "I broke into the store and tried to find the contract with little luck…the worst part though…" she had to take another breath. "The worst part is that Mr. Gold _found me_ in his shop!"

"What?!" I looked at her shocked. No one had ever been ballsy enough to try and steal from Mr. Gold before. I couldn't believe she got away unscathed.

She nodded quickly, "I-I-I can't believe it…he _caught_ me!"

"How did you make it out alive?!" Ruby looked at her worriedly.

"I pepper sprayed him…" she put her head in her hands and just shook. "He hit his head on a table and then passed out. I looked for the contract, but had no luck finding it…"

"Jesus Christ," I shook my head in disbelief at what Ashley had done. Not only was I in disbelief, but I was also impressed. I couldn't believe she had the guts to even consider trying to rob Mr. Gold. I looked at her with a smile, "Okay, for one…you're a fucking badass."

Ashley looked up at me surprised, "You think so?"

Ruby rolled her eyes at me, "Now's not exactly the time for that kind of praise, Piper…"

"I know!" I laughed. "But it's true! I can't believe you did that! I don't even have the balls to do what you did, Ash!" She gave me a little smile as I continued, "But second…we need to do something and fast. The collateral damage of this badassery might be kinda catastrophic."

"You got that right!" she laughed surprised by my reaction. "But what the _hell_ am I going to do?! I committed multiple crimes!" she stopped for a second as she realized what she was saying. Her face became extremely concerned, "Guys…holy shit I committed multiple felonies! I'm going to go to jail! I'm going to die in prison! I'm going to _have my baby_ in a jail cell! I'm gonna –" she was starting to hyperventilate.

"Hey," Ruby looked her in the eyes. "No need to worry! We have a plan!"

"We do?" I cocked my eyebrow at her confused.

Ashley yelled, "How on EARTH could you possibly have a plan for this?!"

"Well," she stood up and smiled sassily. "We're gonna get you out of town. Thanks to Piper's brains and my beautiful car…we're gonna help you skip town."

"You are?" Ashley looked between us surprised.

"Wait…" I looked at Ruby concerned. "We want to actually go through with my very preliminary plan right now?"  
"What choice do we have?" Ruby shrugged. "Ashley has to skip town. This way we can help her avoid the police _and_ she'll get to keep her baby."

"Your car's in the shop though," Ashley looked at her worriedly. "And I couldn't possibly take it."

"Why not?" Ruby looked at her surprised. "It's not like you're taking it forever! Piper and I are helping you escape whether you like it or not. Billy is going to drop off my car tomorrow! Ash, you need to get out of here as soon as possible! As soon as Billy drops my car off at Granny's tomorrow, we're helping you escape."

I thought through the plan and sighed, "It might actually work."

"You think?" Ash chuckled. "Seems crazy to me…"

"Well, we don't exactly have a choice." Ruby shrugged. "It's all or nothing now."

Ashley sighed softly as she realized this was true, "I'm going to jail, aren't I?"

"Not if we have anything to say about it," I touched her shoulder. "We're going to help you make a clean getaway. Mr. Gold's not going to know what hit him."

* * *

Granny actually sounded relieved when I told her I was taking the next morning off. I said it was to rest a little more from what had happened earlier this week, but it was actually to help Ashley. I wanted to make sure that our plan went as smooth as possible. There were a lot of places where this could potentially go very wrong…For the sake of my friend and her baby, I had to make sure that everything went smoothly.

Our plan was essentially to get all of Ashley's belongings together that morning and then wait for Ruby's car to get dropped off at Granny's. After Billy left, I would go and pick Ruby's car up so we could load Ashley up and then send her off. It sounded simple, and hopefully, it would be.

If anyone asked where Ashley was we would then redirect them to the "most likely" cause of her disappearance. Her ex. I had no doubt that Mr. Gold would be asking around about Ashley today. If not him, he would have hired someone to do so. We had to be on our toes and make sure that everything went as smoothly as possible.

I had gone to Ashley's place alone that morning to gather all the essential stuff she would need for about a week or two. It would give her enough time to settle wherever she wanted to. It seemed like Boston was the primary choice, right now. That's up to her though. After about two weeks, Ruby or I would then go to her, bring the rest of her stuff and pick up Ruby's car.

The plan seemed good on paper, but I knew there were so many places where this could go wrong. Even me carrying luggage to the B&B seemed extremely suspicious. Luckily, I'm a good liar though and I know Ruby is too. With any luck, we can pull this off for both Ashley and her baby.

Ruby called when Billy dropped her car off, "You need to come now and get the car, Piper. Gold already has a lackey looking for Ashley."

"Oh?" I cocked my eyebrow amused. "Who's his lackey?"

"You wouldn't have guessed it," she sighed. "It's Emma Swan."

"Really?" that's actually really interesting. I'll have to consider looking into that later. "Hmm…Well anyways, we're all packed up. When's your break?"

"Now. I'm coming to say goodbye and pack up the car with you."

"Good idea," I smiled into the phone as I looked at Ashley sitting on my bed. She looked nervous, but I could tell she was anxious to leave. "Anyways, I'll see you soon."

Ashley looked at me nervously, "Car's here?"

"Yep," I nodded at her. "You okay?"

"As good as I'll ever be…I can't believe this is actually happening."

"I know, but it'll work out," I quickly walked over and touched her hand. "I promise."

"I hope so," she laughed sadly. "I don't know what I'm going to do without you guys in Boston."

"Don't worry," I squeezed her hand gently. "You won't be alone for long. Ruby and I will come and visit. Hell, we're probably going to be joining you out there soon."

She smiled at the thought, "We can find an apartment together and be roomies."

"Sounds like an awesome plan to me," I grinned. "But anyways, I gotta get the car. You stay put."

"Will do." she sighed as she encircled her hands around her belly nervously.

* * *

To my ultimate surprise, everything was going extremely smooth. No one was questioning anything we were doing and it was relieving to see it go so well. Our only hiccup was the fact that Ms. Swan was trying to track Ashely down, but Ruby easily threw her off with our already preplanned ex distraction.

Everything was going well. Ashley looked nervous, but I could tell she was ready to leave when Ruby and I entered the B&B. She already had her luggage ready to go at the front. She smiled at us softly. It was time for her to say goodbye, "I don't know how I can repay you two for all that you've done for me."

"There's no need to," I chuckled at her. "Come on, you're practically my sister."

She nodded and gave me a hug, "You are more of a sister than any _real_ sister I've had. Thank you for always being there for me, Piper. Even when I am a real jerk to you."

"You've never been a jerk," I laughed.

"I should have told you about all of this sooner," she sighed as she looked at me. "I mean…look at what you've done to help me. I should have trusted and had more faith in you. I'm so sorry. I'll never make that mistake again."

I smiled at her softly, "Apology accepted, but it's unneeded."

She sighed quietly looking at us both, "God I can't believe this is actually happening…I can't believe I'm the first of us to get out of here!"

"Don't worry," Ruby smiled. "We won't be far behind you."

She gathered us both in a hug, "I'll miss you guys so much."

"We'll always be one call away. Speaking of which," I chuckled touching her belly. "Please call us when you have the baby! I can't wait to meet this little prince or princess."

"Please, you guys will be the first ones I call," she beamed and then sighed gently realizing that she should probably head out. "Now I better get going…don't want Mr. Gold to catch me! I'll miss you guys like crazy, though. Please come and visit me and this little one soon."

"Of course, we will, Silly," Ruby and I both smiled at her. We each gave her one more hug and wished her luck on her journey. We quickly helped her with her luggage and then with one last wave, she was on her way to start her new life in Boston.

* * *

Ruby had finished her shift and we were just simply hanging out in the diner now. She sighed softly, "I can't believe she's gone."

"Me too," I whispered. "I'm so happy that we could help her though."

"Plus," she chuckled taking a sip from her pop. "You and I will be joining her very soon."

"Hopefully Ruby," I lifted my glass. "To new beginnings for our friend."

"I'll drink to that," she smirked and clinked my glass. "We're going to have a real one for her tonight as well."

"Too bad I'm working tonight." I chuckled.

"Aw well," she grinned. "You can have a drink at work."

"Ha," I smirked. "Very funny."

She winked at me and then took another sip of her pop. We were quiet for a moment and then she sighed, "I didn't tell you this before, but I ended up telling Emma about what had happened."

I choked on my drink a little out of shock, "You did what?"

"I told Emma that we helped her get out of town," she shrugged. "She can't do anything now…unless she decides to drive to Boston. Ashley had already been gone for half an hour."

I opened my eyes widely at her, "Ruby I love you, but _why_ would you do that?"

"What?" she looked at me confused. "It's not like Emma's gonna go to Boston to search for her. She's not that dedicated to Gold."

"Quick question, though," I looked at her expectedly. "When was the last time you _saw_ Emma? Or her bug?"

She thought for a moment, "I guess when she came into the diner and I told her…"

"So, what does that tell you?" I whispered annoyed that she wasn't getting it.

She rolled her eyes, "I highly doubt that she would go after her all the way to Boston, Piper. And I only told her that Ash was _thinking_ about Boston. You need to chill, Pipes. She's fine."

"I just don't like that you haven't seen Emma since you told her, and we haven't heard from Ash yet," I whispered feeling a wave of stress washing over me. "I don't like the circumstances."

She rolled her eyes, "She's fine, Piper."

"She better be." I sighed at her.

* * *

I wanted to cry. Instead of heading to Boston like she planned, Ash had gotten into a car accident right outside of Storybrooke. That wasn't even the worse part, though. Apparently, she was in labour when Ms. Swan had found her. She was currently in the hospital and had just given birth to a healthy 6-pound baby girl. Ruby and I were the first ones she had called when all the drama was over.

We practically ran into the hospital looking for our friend and her new little princess. Apparently, Mr. Gold had been talked down by Emma and thank god…Ashley was allowed to keep her baby. The contract had been broken. I don't know how Emma did it or why she did it, but I appreciated it with all my heart. I owed Emma for helping my friend. I didn't know how I was going to repay her, but I was going to make sure that I did somehow.

Ruby and I were beaming with excitement to see our friend…sure our plan didn't work, but hey! I was more than happy that Ashley could stay in Storybrooke with us! We were now able to help her with the baby. She would have the support network that she needed. She knows that someone always has her back.

When we found the room, Ruby and I just beamed as we entered. Ash was glowing as she saw us come in, "Guys! I'm a mommy now!"

We laughed as we quietly, but quickly entered the room. We gave her a quick hug and then looked at the little bundle in her arms. Within it was a gorgeous little baby girl. She was sleeping soundly, "Oh my god, Ash! She's so perfect and small!"

"I _know_!" she laughed. "I just adore her so much! Poop, crying and all!"

We all laughed and just stared at her. After a moment I just laughed, "Oh my goodness, we forgot to ask one of the most important questions!"

Ruby must have seen where I was going with this, "What's the little angel's name?"

"Oh!" Ash laughed as she rolled her eyes at herself. "Well guys, this is Alexandra. Alexandra, these are your aunts Piper and Ruby!"

I smiled, "And boy are your aunts going to spoil you!"

We all just laughed and then just relaxed in the room for a while and talked. She apologized about worrying us, but we just brushed it off. There was no need to apologize. Ruby and I were just happy that she and Alexandra were okay, safe and happy. I was just feeling thankful. Life was beginning to feel somewhat normal again.

Throughout the rest of the day we just helped Ashley out and spent the time together feeling relieved and happy. We were all so thankful that Ash could stay. We were more than happy to help Ash leave to protect her and her baby, but I also know that we're thankful that our plan ultimately failed. We were together again and that's what matters.

* * *

I headed to work a few hours later. Ashley's ex Sean had come to the hospital and I was ready to cuss him out, but Ash being much more mature than I, decided to talk to him. Apparently, he's there for her and Alexandra now. He disobeyed his father and is offering to help Ashley with the baby. In some ways, it was a little hard to believe, but…it made Ash happy. I'll just have to keep an eye on him to make sure he's good for her.

Although it has been a stressful few days, it all worked out in the end. We're all happy and safe. There is a lot that still needs to be done though. There's always more secrets to hear and plenty more to sell…but I need to be more careful about how I project that image to my friends. They are what matter the most, and honestly, they are worth more than any secret to me.


End file.
